As it stands, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has declared that violating a website’s terms of service is not a crime.

This may not be a game-changer, since it’s only the Ninth Circuit. However, large-scale legal decisions are often decided by prevailing decisions pertaining to smaller ones. The benefit of this is that it does allay many legitimate fears of clicking “Accept” on something that will invariably ravage one’s wallet or liberties.