Network Is Not A Space Beyond The Legal Regulation

Pluralism in this modern society boosts the development of all aspects, involvingthe expansion of the world of virtual network, which has overspread geometrically inrecent years. During this process, numerous cases emerging in the virtual communityhave aroused hot discussions and debates of the media and scholars from the researchfields. These complicated cases cover wide ranges of social life and some of themeven require the intervention of the criminal law to be settled down. To betterunderstand the mechanism of law applied in solving these virtual issues, this paperfocuses mainly on the ones concerning the (1) personal relationship and (2) propertyrelationship. Through analyses of a large number of detailed cases, research objectshere are carefully subdivided into three categories, namely virtual property, virtualviolence, and virtual sex, in order to conduct the study clearly.Firstly, these three sorts of cases happen more frequently in various forms.Secondly, they represent the most significant part of the personal and propertyrelationships. As a result, studying them is a thing of great value as well as it helps togive a better understanding of the differentials between the virtual world and the realone. Seen through the research monographs and papers of cyberspace, it is a pity tofind that most of them put the emphasis on a specific point. To put the comprehensionof this topic one step forward, this article explores to explain the behaviors by grasping the virtual world as a whole, with the hope to provide a comprehensively andthoughtfully systematic elaboration of this theme.Multiple cases are delicately examined together with the existing theories.Meanwhile, the main focuses are given to the differences and correlations of the legalissues both in the virtual world and in reality, especially how the problem would bechanged when it steps outside the limitations of the virtual realm. Typical cases thathave sparked far-reaching influence or been already on trial are used to discuss theapplicability of the de facto stipulations and regulations in the virtual networks.Seen from the current situation and developing trend, it is believed that althoughthe virtual world seems to be not in real, it is also definitely not confined to completeunreality. More often, the virtual society manifests a close relation to the real world.For this reason, the virtual world is not just the online world in the traditional sense.With its obvious complexity and the frequent contacts with the reality, such placewould never become a land beyond the reach of law. In studying the issues of thevirtual community here in this paper, it looks forward to attracting more concerns tolegal issues in this research fields.