How The Internet Has Aided Criminal Activity

Today, technology has affected our global surroundings in a number of ways. Technology has created a more advanced society and economy. We use technology in every aspect of life today. New innovations and technology helps create a safer atmosphere and reduces the rate of crime. Technology is the usage and knowledge of techniques or is systems of these things. Usage of technology in the criminal justice system is not new but more apparent today. Technology in criminal justice will continue to challenge us to think about how we turn information into knowledge. Due to new technology, criminal investigations are able to maintain and improve their processes. Forensic science, DNA, other

Chapter 13 Suler discusses the different kinds of deviant behavior in the digital world. Advances in technology have resulted in new forms of deviance as well as new forms of control. The internet is the place for deviance because of the lack of proper constraints and restraints on associations. The internet has the ability to form communities that creates and supports behaviors that are no longer a norm.

The Department of Justice report entitled "Investigations Involving the Internet and Computer Networks" (2007) states that the Internet may be used by criminals for various reasons including the trading or sharing of information, concealing or assuming another identity, identifying and gathering information on victims and communicating with co-conspirators. The Internet may also be used by criminals for the distribution of information or alternatively misinformation and for the coordination of meetings,

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

Just in the last decade, there has been a 29% increase in crimes committed against residents and a 22% increase for business losses due to online crimes (Meyer). Another large issue with technology is that they monitor an individualś every move, for example, a phone company, AT&T, was monitoring their customers phones to be able to “use your individual Web browsing information, like the search terms you enter and the Web pages you visit, to tailor ads and offers to your interests” (Silverman 282). Although the increase in such crimes can potentially cause many issues and obstacles for an individual, they do not physically harm anyone. Such crimes as internet fraud and any other crime that can be committed online, are all fixable and can be prevented. There are security systems that can help protect against frauds and prevent any more from occurring, which makes this issue much less crucial to stop. It is also possible to contact police and bankers to stop this from occurring and they can help you regain all of your losses. The government also has the NSA, the National Security Agency, to monitor all internet movements, which helps stop many of these issues. New technology has helped prevent an immense amount of street crimes, that without the internet, would have only continued to rise, while millions of people would have continued to be murdered.

Based on Dauphin County First Assistant District Attorney Fran Chardo, “We become a very electronic-oriented society.” (Marc Goodman). With this increase usage of electronic, we see a new set of criminals and crimes. With the cellular telephone, criminals use it, not only to communicate with one another, but also to target people and as a triggering device. For example, if the criminals are searching for someone they can text each other with the description of a person and then upon verification proceed with an order, possible death. With this same cellular telephone technology, law enforcement can use someone’s cellular telephone to track their movements or identify their location to help with investigations. The new set of crimes is cybercrimes. A cybercrime is any crime that involves the use of computer or the manipulation of digital data. Zackary J. Miller, section Chief of the FBI’s Cyber Criminal Division stated, “I think there is a growing cybercrime problem that we are continuing to chase a bit behind the curve… bank robbery and fraud are all facilitated by the internet.” (Bernice Young, 2011). There are five types of computer crimes: (1). internal computer crimes, such as viruses; (2). internet and telecommunication, which is hacking; (3). criminal enterprises, databases supporting drug distribution; (4). computer manipulation, embezzlement; and (5). hardware, software, and information theft. (Schmalleger,

There are four major categories in computer crime. The first is the computer as a target. Then would come the computer as an instrument of a crime. Followed by computer as an incidental to a crime. Not to mention crimes associated with the prevalence of computers. These four major categories are what contributes to digital crimes, involving the worldwide web.

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

Security and privacy concerns present challenges for law enforcement combating deep web criminal activity. Crimes committed on or with the Internet are relatively new. Those crimes include illicit trade in drugs, weapons, wildlife, stolen goods, or people; illegal gambling; sex trafficking; child pornography; terrorism and anarchy; corporate and sovereign espionage; and financial crimes. Police agencies have been fighting an uphill battle always one step behind an ever evolving digital landscape and the criminals who exploit it. The novelty of the Internet begets jurisdictional and legal issues law enforcement must address while remaining ethical and holding to the code of law. Due to the anonymous nature of deep web criminal activity and the means for uncovering perpetrators, privacy concerns of citizens legally using the same software or websites are now a hot topic.

The processing of a crime scene is the most important step in beginning the investigation into a crime. While the majority of crime scenes are very routine, there are many factors that can present unique challenges to investigators and detectives. Some of these challenging factors include outside forces such as, the media and public. This challenge also ties into the media’s presentation on law enforcement and forensics. The media is at times only concerned about their viewers and increasing their ratings, instead of reporting on the full story and facts that are provided by law enforcement and the investigators. The media presents an extreme challenge when they report information that could compromise the investigation or interview witness before detectives have the opportunity to take official statements. (Seddon & Pass pg.65)

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.

A severe dilemma associated with the increasing availability of the World Wide Web is the use of the “Dark Web” as a means for criminal activities throughout the world. The “Web” consists of the Surface Web which allows access to popular sites like YouTube and Facebook, the Deep Web, which consist of private databases and libraries filtered out by common search engines like Google, and the Dark Web which is intentionally hidden for reasons of anonymity; whether for good or bad reasons. There are three main solutions that help fray criminal activities on the Dark Web: the use of specialized government agencies to regulate and police the Dark Web, the fixation of resources to combat more serious criminal activities: and conducting more research of the content and workings of the Dark Web. Further examining the need for more research of the Dark Web will help elaborate why the use of specialized government agencies and the fixation of resources on more serious crimes should not be accepted has valid solutions.

In today’s world, we are all in some way connected to or involved with the internet. We all use different services that we feel either enrich our lives or make them more enjoyable every day, from email to FaceBook, MySpace, and e-commerce. We all take a sort of false comfort in the basic anonymity of the internet; however, when we think about it, that could end up being the single biggest risk to our own safety today. When we typically think of crimes committed against us, we could probably name several: mugging, theft, scams, murder, and rape. For these, things we all take as many necessary steps as we can to help lower the chances of them happening to us because they are on the forefront of our minds. However, most of us don’t take the

The Internet has made the world a littler spot, making it less demanding to get data, work together, and stay in contact. Be that as it may, as more business and individual cooperations move into the digital space, boundless measures of individual data is being gathered, put away, and broke down.

The Internet is a connection of computers across the world through a network. Its origin dates back to the 1960s when the U.S Military used it for research, but it became more available to the public from the late 1980s. The World Wide Web was created in 1989 and browsers began appearing in the early 1990s. Over the last 24 years, the Internet has enabled people to shop, play, do research, communicate and conduct business online. It has also become cheaper and faster in performing different tasks. As much as the Internet has done immeasurable good to society, it has also dominated people’s lives and brought with it an array of cybercrimes. According to Nicholas Carr in his book The Shallows: How the Internet is Changing the Way we Think,