In law, trespass can be: the criminal act of going into somebody else's land or property without permission of the owner or lessee; it is also a civil law tort that may be a valid cause of action to seek judicial relief and possibly damages through a lawsuit. In some jurisdictions trespassing is an offence or misdemeanour covered by a criminal code. In other jurisdictions, it is not considered a crime or penal in nature, property is protected from trespass under civil law and privacy acts. In England and Wales, despite the prevalence of notices asserting that "trespassers will be prosecuted", unless the trespass is aggravated in some way, it will only be a civil wrong. Although criminal and civil trespass laws vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, most have the following facets in common: Property owners and their agents (for example, security guards) may
only use reasonable force to protect their property. For example, setting booby traps on a property to hurt trespassers or shooting at trespassers are usually strictly forbidden except in extreme circumstances. Not all persons seeking access to property are trespassers. The law recognizes the rights of persons given express permission to be on the property ("licensees") and persons who have a legal right to be on the property ("invitees") not to be treated as trespassers. For example, a meter reader on the property to read the meter is an invitee, as would be a travelling salesperson, or a police officer seeking to execute a warrant.