Cybercrime - an overview

Cybercrime - Section 3

(1) What is it? | (2) How can it be reported? | (3) Will it ever stop?

Will it ever stop?

In not-so-distant times, the masses of the public could be spooked by shocking crime headlines from the local newspaper. Before long, an angry mob would be waving torches and banging on the courthouse door, demanding that action be taken. Cybercrime has not yet reached that type of hysteria, and it most likely never will. However, the best way to prevent internet-based crime is to educate those individuals using the technology. In addition, the more that public awareness is raised on the issue, the more that questions will arise. The internet-dependent public needs to know, what are businesses and law enforcement agencies actually doing to combat the growing number of electronic internet crimes? Are there other solutions for the future?

The types of cyber-crimes being committed have been identified, and there are even specific places that take reports of these illegal activities. Numerous federal, state, and district prosecutors information detailing ways that they are attempting to deal with internet crimes. But just as cybercrimes are recent to the realm of illegal activities, combating the offenses is also a new science. According to an article from the Artificial Intelligence Review, the police and businesses must work together to solve the problem. To enforce legislation put forth on the issue, the article states that it "requires the combining of investigative, legal, courtroom, and computing skills in an extension of forensic science. The term suggested for this new discipline is computer forensics." (Collier, 1997) The development of updated enforcement techniques is a step in the right direction, but only time will indicate whether computer forensics is successful in cybercrime enforcement.

Presently, most internet servers are equipped with measures to avoid cyberfraud and similar crimes. Password requirements have been put into place nearly everywhere the private information is kept, and it is commonly used in conjunction with encrypted data transfer. Other complex security measures are being increasingly at universities and other restricted-access servers, such as Kerebos. This new technology "enables two parties to exchange private information across an otherwise open network." (PC Web, 1999) Despite these security measures, there are still hackers that can go almost anywhere in the cyberworld, with just a few keystrokes. One way to trace the intruders would involve the government; they have considered placing a tracking device in each computer, allowing law enforcement agencies to locate hackers. This idea has been met with resistance, since many computer users are concerned with the issue of privacy invasion (Salvaggio, 1989).

As backwards as it may sound, it is also possible to diminish certain cybercrimes by educating the offenders themselves. To use a familiar topic as an example: there are software programs available on the internet referred to as "shareware". These computer programs are written and allowed to be distributed over the internet, given the promise that the person downloading the software will pay for it after the allowed trial period. The refusal to pay is a form of software piracy, which was identified earlier in this report as a cybercrime against property. One study showed that the likelihood of such shareware violations is significantly correlated with imitation as defined by the social learning theory (Skinner & Fream, 1997). That is, people learn these activities by "doing what others do". Furthermore, another study revealed that educating students on the ethical aspects of the subject and making them realize the seriousness of their actions reduced the likelihood of repeat offenses (Sacco & Zureik, 1990).

With all the proposed solutions, it may be obvious that there is no single cure-all for cybercrime. The advanced communication that the internet provides has created unanticipated complications (see the image below), but it can still be utilized to resolve the electronic crime problems. With the acceptance and expansion of more secure internet servers, along with public education on the subject, cybercrimes can be brought to a minimum. Mass communication on the subject between law enforcement agencies, companies, ordinary citizens, and even some offenders can only assist the battle against cybercrime.

Section 3 References