Catergories of the Role of the Internet

Explain how the Internet has aided criminal activity. The internet has aided criminal activity by communicating with each other without having to be near, as well as fraud and identity theft. The rise of the Internet over the last decade has paralleled some of the greatest milestones in communications history. Along with such great strides in bringing the world together, the frightening aspect of accessing information and propaganda that tests the very limits of the U.S. Constitution has arrived. Above all, the Internet is used to commit against persons that include various crimes like transmission of child-pornography, harassment of any one with the use of a computer such as e-mail. The trafficking, distribution, posting, and dissemination of obscene material including pornography and indecent exposure, constitutes one of the most important criminal activity known today. With just a few keystrokes, an individual can have access to all forms of personal information, bomb-making instructions, and poison recipes; and a plethora of extremist ideologies expressing everything from radical religious cults to clandestine organized crime groups.

Provide three specific examples of how the Internet has aided criminal activity. One of the examples could be considered as identity theft. Identity theft is the use of one person’s personal information by another to commit fraud or other crimes. The most common forms of identity theft occur when someone obtains another person’s social security number, driver’s license number, date of birth, and the like and uses it to open a fraudulent bank, credit card, cellular telephone, or other account, or to obtain false loans. Criminal identity theft, the most common nonfinancial type, occurs when someone gives another’s personal information to a law enforcement officer when he or she is arrested. In addition to the financial losses resulting from identity theft, the person whose personal information has been used will have an erroneous credit or criminal history that is often expensive and time-consuming to correct. The occurrence of identity theft increased significantly beginning in the late 1990s due to the computerization of records and the ability to use another’s personal information anonymously over the Internet. As most people already know in America, identity theft is the fastest growing crime of any kind going on today. The number of new cases of identity theft is staggering.

Some of these cases involve the theft of huge volumes of personal information by credit card companies. For example, MasterCard had a recent case where more than 400,000 customers had their personal information stolen. Another example of how the Internet has aided criminal activity is Money laundering. Money laundering is the process of concealing the source of money obtained by illicit means. The methods by which money may be laundered are varied and can range in sophistication. Many regulatory and governmental authorities quote estimates each year for the amount of money laundered, either worldwide or within their national economy. Regardless of the difficulty in measurement, the amount of money laundered each year is in the billions (US dollars) and poses a significant policy concern for governments. As a result, governments and international bodies have undertaken efforts to deter prevent and apprehend money launderers. The third example is Internet sex crimes. Using the internet to lure or entice a minor by criminal misuse of cyberspace to target and physically victimize children, particularly teenagers are having exposure to unwanted sexual solicitations, which is happening so much that it is known to affect (1 in 7 youth).

It also includes unwanted exposure to sexual material ( 1 in 3) and harassment ( 1 in 11); as well as threatening or other offensive behavior directed at children to persuade them to be a part of sexual activities. Sex offender registration is a lifetime label which will affect where an offender will be able to work and live. Being as a sex offender will result in a damaged reputation and difficulty in obtaining employment and even certain loans. Any computer sex crime case will require ample research and the use of experts in the field of computer forensics. The concept of hacking alone, for example, may bring about the possibility that a defendant will entirely unaware that his or her computer contained pornographic material depicting children. Identify the types of crime that traditionally have been non-digital in nature are now best abetted in Internet activity. Many traditional crimes are now being aided or abetted through the use of computers and networks, and wrongdoing previously never imagined has surfaced because of the incredible capabilities of information systems.

The types of traditional crimes are violent, theft, fraud, and illegal activity. One of the violent crimes that have come out of the computer has been Cyber Bullying. Cyber bullying is when one person makes threats or set-up another and creates mental duress for the person. While it does not lay hand to a victim, it can result in a victim’s death because of the level of intent to harm the victim emotionally. Theft can occur when someone uses a credit card number or taps into a person’s bank account via the Internet. In addition, many people have had money stolen from them through fraudulent promises of riches to be obtained if they respond to certain e-mails. Fraud can happen when a person uses a person’s name and identity to apply for credit cards or other things. A friend of mine had her identity stolen by someone who used her name to get an online library card. It ended up allowing them to access her accounts and credit statements.

There are many crimes on the internet. It appears that when the internet became a regular operation of household business breeching security became a hobby turned criminal activity for those smart enough to engage in the act. Describe the role viruses, other malicious code, and phishing attacks play in aiding this criminal activity. Today viruses and other types of malicious code are primarily spread over the Internet through a variety of mechanisms including e-mails, e-mail attachments, downloadable files, Wed pages, newsgroup, peer-to-peer file transfers, instant messaging, digital pictures, and other techniques. Viruses and other types of malicious code take advantage of the very conveniences and features that make the Internet so appealing. Most virus writers and attackers are opportunistic and like other criminals choose to attack systems at their weakest and most vulnerable points.

A virus or malicious code program is written for a variety of noncriminal purposes including advertisements, jokes, and political messages. The development of virus construction tools by virus writers allows a larger number of less sophisticated computer users to write and create viruses. A virus construction set is a utility program intended for creating new computer viruses. Phishing scams have flourished in recent years due to favorable economic and technological conditions. The technical resources needed to execute phishing attacks are readily acquired through public and private sources. Some technical resources have been streamlined and automated, allowing use by non-technical criminals. This makes phishing both economically and technically viable for a larger population of less sophisticated criminals.

References

www.findacriminaldefense.com
www.usatoday.com
www.cert.org/archive
www.internetjournalofcriminology.com/Thomason_Internet_Money www.defending.com › Sexual Offenses › Internet Sex Crimes