Cybercrime And The Fight Against Cybercrime

Cybercrime has experienced significant progress during recent years, as its advance is directly proportional with the advance of technology. In spite of the fact that the authorities devise new and better strategies to fight cybercrime, the fact that the number of people online is constantly increasing means that cybercrimes occur even more frequently. Dishonest people who seek opportunities have discovered how the internet stands as a perfect environment for them to commit crimes by taking as little risks as possible. Computer fraud generates a series of benefits for the person committing it, as he or she can either profit financially from the enterprise or can simply alter files in order for his or her image to be positively affected. Identity theft is a major form of cybercrime and it is essential for society to acknowledge the gravity of the matter in order to be able to effectively fight against criminals using it.

The internet has brought upon a new revolution of global interconnection where contacting someone on the other side of the world is just a click away, but with this international phenomenon comes an increased susceptibility with unfamiliar technology. Internet crime is compiled of all non-physical crime with the aid of a computer. Although broad in definition internet crimes are largely composed of acts such as cyber fraud, ‘phishing’ (username and password hacking), cyber stalking and hacking. Internet crime does not pose an overwhelming issue in society in terms of its

The creation go of the Internet has helped spawn new forms of criminals and crimes, and has always helped make older criminal schemes easier to execute, identity theft, child pornography, copyright violations, hacking and you could go on and on. In a 2003 survey conducted by the CSI with the participation of the San Francisco Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Computer Intrusion Squad, of the 530 respondents made up of U.S. corporations, government agencies, financial institutions, medical institutions and universities, 56% reported unauthorized use of their computer systems (2003 CSI/FBI Computer Crime and Security Survey).

At the beginning of the second millennium, an era of information society, based on the increasing use of computers, computer technology, information technology, making available "everything to everyone, everywhere and always" very urgent problem of improving the legislation in the fight against various kinds of offenses in this area, and first of all crimes. Currently, computer crime, has acquired an international dimension, is already receiving an adequate assessment of the international community, in particular, is reflected in a special Convention on Cybercrime, signed in 2001 in Budapest, representatives of 30 countries, members of the Council of Europe. The scale of a virtual crime using the internet in the US can be seen from the following

When you begin to examine how the internet and crime are related, you must first examine exactly what the internet is and how it works. The internet is a global system of computers and networks that are interconnected and service billions of users at any given time. This could be considered a cybercriminals’ playground. Because billions of computers are connected via a vast array of private and public networks including many government agencies, it is easy to see how a cybercriminal could obtain valuable information or unleash denial of service attacks that could cripple many of these systems.

There are many countries where terrorist activities are simply a part of life and where criminal activities are commonplace. Even in well-developed countries there can be problems. One of the most insidious of these activities, however, is cybercrime. It may seem less dangerous because it is not physically damaging to the person who is being targeted, but gaining access toa person's private information can cause serious damage to that person's good name and reputation, along with his or her credit, ability to obtain employment, and other parts of life. Something has to be done, but by the time issues are corrected there are new issues appearing. It can feel like a losing battle. Because of constant technological change, new challenges are arising regarding information access and privacy.

The idea of internet crime regulation has been around for quite awhile, yet no one has taken this subject seriously. Cybercrime is a major problem in the US which needs to be brought to an end, immediately. There are many questions raised when cybercrime regulation is brought up. These questions include the status quo, problems with the status quo, why now is the most opportune time for change, the alternatives, drawbacks, benefits, funding issues, who will regulate the internet, and the punishments for these crimes.

Cyber crime spans not only state and national boundaries, but the international boundaries as well. At the Tenth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and Treatment of Offenders, in a workshop devoted to the issues of crimes related to computer networks, cybercrime was broken into two categories and defined thus:

An invisible war is raging between cybercriminals and those who wish to make the virtual world a safer place, but the laws that could change the tides of this war are being called into question. Cybercrimes are a virtual epidemic that is sweeping the online world with crimes constantly posing as a threat such as identity theft, hacking, cyberterrorism, and computer viruses. In order to combat cybercrime the U.S. government passed the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) that allowed prosecutors to charge cybercriminals for their cybercrimes. Cybercrimes laws implemented by the CFAA should be strengthened in order to deter harmful cybercrimes because cybercrime has effect corporations, people, and the government.

For an organization to safeguard its computer network it has to take computer security seriously and put it as one of its top priorities so as to ensure that vital services are available for it to operate. Furthermore, computer security requires the involvement of all the stakeholders through the sharing of information and collaborating in designing new ways of deterring attackers. Prosecution of offenders is a big challenge due to the nature of computer crime versus the set standard of evidence, as noted by McCusker (2007) ‘Contentions have appeared concerning whether such online crime can be classified into our general criminal justice framework, due to the shortfall in accessible examination materials which help or contradict either contention’.

The agencies employed by governments to police the web in order to protect the vulnerable have seen an increase in child pornography and online fraud. The speed at which information can be distributed and the number of people that can be reached attracts those that are intent on causing harm. The term “cybercrime” is becoming more widely used. The financial gains that can be made and the anonymity the internet can provide, make the virtual world of cyberspace a haven for criminals. Although the internet has huge benefits for information gathering and social networking, in the wrong hands it can cause harm to the vulnerable and criminals are able to vanish into the underground with the use of false identities that are hard to track online.

One might think that cybercrime is just hacking a computer, but there are many sides that this paper will examine.

For this paper I will be discussing how cybercrime effects society and what the challenges of policing cybercrime are. I will do so by, going in depth on the threat cybercrime has on society and pin point the different classes of it. This will include the risk factors on the victims as well as frequency and brutality that cybercrime has after one has fallen victim to a cyber-attack. I will also shed light on challenges the police encounter when dealing with cyber threats on society. The challenges that I will pointing out that police face when dealing with cyber threats are 1. when does the police have to consider the cyber threat a real crime. 2. Under-reporting, and 3. The law does not deal with trifles. After that I will further my research paper by elaborating on the literature review which would exemplify the empirical accomplishments and points of improvement; then proceed to use all my research to form a conclusion on whether a better tactic can be used to help the police decrease cybercrime. The type of literature that I will be using to further back up my points is going to be Stats Canada, journals, peer reviews and other course text books.

The development of any society is accompanied by a unique pattern of crime. The innovation of digital technology came to us as a blessing but not without its’ dark side. This innovation brought about novel challenges popularly referred to as cyber-crime. Policing the prevalence of cyber-crime and its threat to electronic commerce has been of great concern to all government.

Cybercrime has become a fast growing concern for the 21st century as businesses, institutions and individuals grow into an interconnected web of computer networks. Online business transactions, along with the sharing of personal information, are vulnerable to a host of disasters that can reap economic and social havoc. Some sources say that today, cybercrime costs more than $1.0 trillion to society--Global Industry Analysts, Inc. forecasted the world cyber security market to reach $80 billion by 2017 (Gale, 2011).