Don't get me wrong - I don't want to be mean to the scammers. There are lots of people online who do that. I'm content merely having fun inventing, and I figure any time they're spending with me is time in which they're not scamming vulnerable adults out of their savings.
Computer hackers do not need to know each other's real names, or even live on the same continent, to steal millions in mere hours.
It is amazing the information we give away. We make it easier and easier for criminals.
Cyberspace
Just as the telephone may be used both to report a crime to the police and to conspire to commit one, so too may the Internet be abused to interfere with the rights of others, national security or public order.
Technology is a force multiplier for evil.
We're risking the future of the net. People are already losing their trust. Once you get burned once - somebody steals your credit card, or makes a purchase on your account - people tend to stay away from online commerce and from trusting online services.
We now see hacking taking place by foreign governments and by private individuals all around the world.
There are many random, unprotected sites online that appear safe to use and are ready to accept credit card information. You wouldn't give a stranger off the street your credit card information, so be extra cautious about who you are sharing it with online.
The most astonishing subset of the Deep Web is a collection of dark alleys called the Dark Web. The Dark Web is generally thought of as a collection of criminal elements intent on subverting the law, stealing our money, and possibly kidnapping our daughters.
Online crime is practically always international, because they almost always cross traditional national borders.
'419 scams,' named for a clause from the Nigerian penal code, are such a part of the white noise of the digital age that we no longer notice them.
What was once a comparatively minor threat - people hacking for fun or for bragging rights - has turned into full-blown economic espionage and extremely lucrative cyber crime.
You don't even know if the person you're communicating with online is actually that person. And your persona on your social media - your Facebook or Twitter - may not be the person you are in real life. So then, who is the real person? Is it somewhere in between?
Are hackers a threat? The degree of threat presented by any conduct, whether legal or illegal, depends on the actions and intent of the individual and the harm they cause.
If you're a cyber-criminal, the days of stealing data and then selling it for cash in the dark web - they're not so profitable as they used to be.
'Social engineering,' the fancy term for tricking you into giving away your digital secrets, is at least as great a threat as spooky technology.
Like everybody else, criminals of all stripes increasingly rely on wireless communications, hand-held devices, and the Internet.
The Internet is brittle and fragile and too easy to take down. It's a conduit for criminal activity. We need international treaties to prosecute the bad guys, but we don't have them.
The Spy Act prohibits keystroke logging, hijacking, and phishing.
I'm vitally interested in cyber crime and in preparing law enforcement for a time when crime is international in its origins and its consequences.
Crazy stuff happens when you start replying to scam emails. It's really difficult, and I highly recommend we do it.
The hacking trend has definitely turned criminal because of e-commerce.
Cybercrime is becoming everything in crime. Again, because people have connected their entire lives to the Internet, that's where those who want to steal money or hurt kids or defraud go. So it's an epidemic for reasons that make sense.
I never knew before getting involved with these investigations that so much of this activity was going on. I mean, obviously there are chat rooms, social networking sites, and it occurs. I just didn't ever think it occurred at this level.
_0_thumbnail_47x47.jpg){kind=small}
