Scams Associated With Cybercrime

Identity theft is the stealing and use of someone’s personal information and is one of the fastest growing crimes in the nation (Dole, 2005). According to Federal Trade Commission estimates, identity thieves victimize approximately 10 million Americans every year at a cost of an astonishing $50 billion (2005). Identity theft has been going on for years now and is easily done with the help of today’s technology. According to the Federal Trade Commission, there are six common ways that identity thieves get a hold of personal information. The varieties of methods that are used are dumpster diving, skimming, phishing, changing the victim’s address, stealing, and pretexting (Federal Trade Commission). Once someone’s identity is stolen,

Figuring out if an identity is stolen is not easy only because it can be unknown until damage is dealt. This is why identity theft isn’t easy to stop. When most people report a crime, police arrive on the scene before serious damage is dealt, but when a thief steals a person’s identity, the victim can be unaware for quite some time before they realize the amount of money they lost. According to Tracey Whittaker and Anne Dilascio, in 2003, the average money lost from identity theft per person was $4,789, but in 2006 the average was less than $2000. The average out-of-pocket cost of identity theft victims in 2005 was

In recent years, the world has seen significant changes in technology. With new technology come new challenges. One of those new challenges is identity theft. Identity theft can happen through the internet, ATM, emails, or even a phone. Identity theft can happen when any person(s) takes an individual’s information, such as their Social Security number, or even banking information for financial gain. “Close to 100 million Americans have their personal information placed at risk of theft each year when records in databases are lost, stolen or accessed by unauthorized individuals” (Information systems and technology, n.d.). Identity theft not only costs the person, whose

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

Internet identity theft is a serious danger in our world today, victims of this crime have had their lives ruined and in some cases have ended up in jail because of crimes committed by an identity thief. Internet identity theft is “the criminal act of fraudulently obtaining the personal information belonging to another individual within the realm of a computer or electronic setting.”(1) Throughout the past several years there have been several laws passed to combat and keep up with this ever evolving crime, those laws include The Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act, The Identity Theft Penalty Enhancement Act, and The Identity Theft Enforcement and Restitution Act of 2008. In addition to these, several states have pending legislation out there to either pass new state laws or revise current ones. In this paper, theses laws and the pending legislation in some of those states will be discussed in detail.

During this project, the question arose; who is or has been the biggest winner of identity theft? In the few rare cases involving identity theft where a perpetrator was caught, the culprits in the following cases were identified. And the runner up in the game of identity theft is: Albert Gonzales who in 2008 stole 30 million credit and bank card numbers, hacked several corporate data bases and stole over $200 million. And our grand prize winner is: Philip Cummings who in 2002 obtained 15,000 consumer’s identities and hacked a credit reporting agency. He stole $2.7 million. (Graphs.net). While there is no clear solution to prevent being a victim of identity theft, a person can only take precautions, be aware of their surroundings, monitor

Identity theft has not had a clear definition. The unclear definition is due to the complexity of the facts regarding identity theft. Identity theft, also known as ‘the crime of the new millennium’ or white color theft has come to the public eyes due to the impacts of the act (Craats, 2005). Identity theft occurs when a person misappropriates another person’s information and uses it with the intention of gaining some particular advantages. In this case, a person means not only a human being but also a legal person such as a company (Craats, 2005). In most cases, the advantage gained is financial, for example, presuming identity of a person, taking their credit card and through deception, withdrawing money from their accounts. In U.S, the federal law defines identity theft as ‘knowingly transferring, holding, or using, without authorized right, a way of identification of another individual with the intent to undertake, aid any illegal activity that includes violation of Federal law, or that constitutes a felony under any national or local law.’ Identity theft has been said to be made easier due to globalization and lack of cyber borders (Giles 2010). Lack of cyber borders provides a ripe environment for identity thieves to function from within the state 's borders as well as from beyond.

In this day and age, the threat of identity theft for the common individual has increased drastically. With advancements in technology and the ever growing power of the internet, identity thieves can rob personal information from unsuspecting victims quickly and easily. Identity theft has formed into a particular type of cyber crime. Perpetrators access the personal information of individuals by “phishing”, deceiving them into giving them personal data, the use of malware to access information, or hacking which allows criminals to illegally access individual’s computers. However, the breach of personal data is not limited to the individual person, as recently as 2016 organizations such as the United States Federal Reserve, the Central Bank

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.

In today’s world where computers, cellular phones, wireless internet connections and electronic transactions are common place norms, maintaining ones identity can be a challenge. In 2012 the United States population was 314.1 million people, in the same year, 75.6 percent of households reported having a computer. (Government Census, 2012) With this high population and electronic use, one could extrapolate that there is high risk for computer fraud and identity theft. For example consider these statistics in 2013, identity theft complaints accounted for 14% of all complaints. The most common form of reported identity theft was government documents/benefits fraud, 34%, followed by credit card fraud, 17%, phone or utilities fraud, 14%, and bank fraud, 8%. Forty-one percent of identity theft complainants reported whether they contacted law enforcement. Of those victims, 74% notified a police department and 61% indicated a report was taken. (Government Census, 2012) There are many ways to counter identity theft, some being not to give out personal data or to make sure to properly destroy/secure all important documentation. These methods of protection seem quite feasible and often time practical, however with the rate at which identity theft occurs the validity of these protections might come into question. Therefore this research proposal begs the questions of how effective are these counter measures, to what degree are the counter measures followed by the victims, and

     In today's society, there is a white-collar crime that has greatly risen in popularity among criminals. This crime is identity theft. Hundreds of thousands of people have their identities stolen each year. Identity theft is when these criminals obtain and use consumers personal information such as credit card numbers, bank account numbers, insurance information, and social security numbers to purchase goods or services fraudulently. According to the Federal Trade Commission, over 1.1 million people were the victim of identity theft. With this number, it is very evident that identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in our country. This paper will attempt to more thoroughly define identity theft. It will

Only within the past few years have there even been reliable estimates of the incidence of identity theft. “The first thorough survey of the extent of identity theft was conducted for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 2003. A similar survey, involving interviews with slightly more than 4,900 randomly selected individuals, was conducted for the commission between March and June 2006” (Anderson, Durbin, & Salinger. ID Theft). Victims of identity theft are commonplace and the resulting monetary losses have been impressive. However, this attention to identity theft is a fairly new phenomenon. With its immense growth, attention and precedence, cyber-criminals are able to infiltrate and depreciate the integral infrastructure of our society which creates a cultural lapse through the declination of economic and cultural growth and double jeopardize an already unstable system to the brink of its destruction. Research has suggested that victims of identity theft spend an average of $1,500 in out-of-pocket expenses and an average of 175 hours per incident of identity theft in order to resolve the many problems caused by identity

Common types of cybercrime include online bank information theft, identity theft, online predatory crimes and

“Identity theft: the fraudulent practice of using another person's name and personal information to obtain credit, loans, etc.” In 2014, there were around 95,000 reports of identity theft in the UK alone. However, that enormous figure rose even further in 2015 to a spine-chilling 148,000 - causing identity theft to rise by 58% in one year alone. Someone new becomes a target every day. Every day, someone loses their individuality. Every day, someone gains an online twin. These so-called

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).