Cyber_Worlds__Protected_

Crime has many faces. These faces are ever changing. As the world extends its reach further into the depth of technology, we open ourselves for many new ways crime can take place. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has extended its reaches into the new frontier by forming a task force dedicated to cyber crime. The task force prioritizes itself about four specialized fields: computer intrusions, online child pornography, anti-piracy/intellectual property rights, and cyber fraud. Computers are vulnerable to crime just as any source of communication and personal property can. Criminals invade countless homes and offices across the nation without having to break down windows or doors, but laptops, personal computers, and wireless networks. Just as in any intrusion, there is something behind the closed doors that give criminals the incentive to break in, in the first place. What would a criminal want with what is on a computer' Well, with technological advancements, people can keep all of their bank accounts, credit cards, personal information and private records in one convenient place. All that information is both important and profitable to the right people. Almost 11 million victims each year fall victim to some sort of identity theft . According to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) up to 26% of these fraudulent activities are sourced to credit cards used to make online purchases. The FBI is also the head investigating team in what is known as the Innocent Images National Initiative or IINI. The IINI is a multi agency investigative operation to combat the proliferation of child pornography/child sexual exploitation facilitated by online computers. Since the launch, the task force has helped law enforcement open more than 15,500 cases; charged more than 4,700 criminals; and arrested more than 6,100 subjects. The FBI announced in 2004 that the task force was to extend it operation view into an international cooperative. The first priorities of the international task force were to target websites that distribute child pornography, but now pursue other child exploitation investigations as well. As Andrew G. Oosterbaan, Chief of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section at the Department of Justice said, “It is impossible for you to appreciate the impact [IINI] has had, without knowing the horribly dark and depraved world that exists out there.” . The FBI is also the nation’s leading force against piracy of media and commercial goods. Any product that is sold with terms of licensing agreements is subject to misappropriation or theft. These includes products that are sold by people and companies that are members of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), the Business Software Alliance (BSA) and the Entertainment Software Association (ESA). It is estimated that over 23 billion dollars has been lost from the American economy because of unauthorized reproduction of copyrighted material. Most of the copyrighted material is obtained through distribution websites, chat rooms, mass email, FTP, and peer-to-peer networks. The FBI has set forth to eradicate and dismantle all criminal enterprises and entities big or small, private and public, that has or is contributing to these crimes. The most targeted groups are usually large structured groups often referred to as “warez groups”. These groups are very hierarchical, with leadership positions that control day-to-day operations. They recruit new members and manage the group’s various computer archive sites. These groups exist solely to engage in piracy and compete with each other to be the first to place a newly pirated work on the internet. Often before the work is legitimately available to the public. The groups employ highly sophisticated technological measures to shield their illegal activities from law enforcement. Because the membership of these groups spanned numerous countries around the world, the investigation requires close coordination of law enforcement officials in a dozen countries. The investigation has so far yielded searches and seizures of over 70 high-level targets that were conducted in Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, the Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, and the United States, as well as Great Britain and Northern Ireland. In the PRO IP Act of 2008, Congress directed the Department’s Criminal Division to work with the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to develop and implement a plan to address links between organized crime and intellectual property crime. Although there has not yet been additional funding provided for this initiative, the Department has nevertheless taken a number of steps to implement the provision and to incorporate intellectual property into its existing International Organized Crime (IOC) Strategy. The IPLEC for Eastern Europe, who has also participated in numerous training programs, has worked directly with small groups of prosecutors and investigators on specific issues. Recently, the Eastern European IPLEC worked closely to train Ukrainian prosecutors on how to build a criminal case against a major online piracy site in that country. Although the Ukrainian authorities lacked access to the sort of computer and forensic technology we take for granted, with technical training from the IPLEC they were able to take down the online piracy site using an outdated personal computer and a dial-up internet connection. The attacks on Estonia were eye opening for many nations; America included. Since then, the Federal government has acknowledged and acted upon the fact that the cyber world is not only a place where the private sector stands exposed to the world but is an expanding war front. Starting in June 6, 2003 the National Cyber Security Division of the Unites States Department of Homeland Security has taken on the role of asserting, assessing, and improving out nations defenses against internet based attacks of all sorts. Their mission statement “The National Cyber Security Division (NCSD) works collaboratively with public, private and international entities to secure cyberspace and America’s cyber assets.” And their Strategic Objectives: “ 1) To build and maintain an effective national cyberspace response system, and 2) To implement a cyber-risk management program for protection of critical infrastructure.”