Texas: A Clever Twist on Computer Consulting
July 2, 2008
Working as an expert witness, I was in a big shot Houston, Texas, law firm. One of the legal eagles had screwed up his laptop. He asked me if I could resolve the problem. I looked at the machine, checked the size of his Outlook PST file (the cause of the problem), did a little nerd magic, and pronounced the machine battle ready.
According to an essay posted at Institute for Justice: Litigating for Liberty, “Magnum PC? New Texas Law Limits Computer Repair to Licensed Private Investigators”, I would have been guilty of a crime. You can read the story here.
The most interesting point in the write up for me is:
The law also criminalizes consumers who knowingly use an unlicensed company to perform any repair that constitutes an investigation in the eyes of the government. Consumers are subject to the same harsh penalties as the repair shops they use: criminal penalties of up to one year in jail and a $4,000 fine, and civil penalties of up to $10,000—just for having their computer repaired by an unlicensed technician.
So, not only was I a bad buy, the lawyer was a bad guy too. I am not sure if this is a hoax or if it is one more example of how interesting the legal system is. A number of scenarios are buzzing through my little mind now. I wonder if consultants working for Booz, Allen & Hamilton involved in systems work will have to be licensed. Somehow a consultant licensed as a private investigator and being paid to root through a client’s computer tickles my funny bone. Texas will need to clarify its consultant monitoring policies, I suppose. The State can’t allow an unlicensed technical SWAT team to fix a computer without the right paperwork.
Next time I am in Texas, I won’t fix your Macbook, Windows notebook, your AS/400–not even your mobile phone with email access. I wonder how much a private investigator’s license is in Texas? Will I have to pass a physical?”
Stephen Arnold, July 2, 2008
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