Cybercrime

Cybercrime

Student’s Name

University Affiliation

Cybercrime

Cybercrime is any criminal activity where the perpetrators use a computer or the internet as the means of commission. The technology and internet era today affects many people’s lives beneficially or harmfully. People are able to share information and communicate very easily. It has benefited many areas including commerce, education, social interaction and entertainment. It has also increased the opportunities to commit crimes with a lesser risk of being caught (Wang & Huang, 2011). According to Gercke (2012), the cybercrime complaints submitted in the United States increased by 22.3 percent compared with 2008. In 2009, the German Crime Statistics also reported an increase of cybercrime by 23.6 percent compared with 2008. As internet technology continues to advance the cases of cybercrimes are expected to continue increasing.

Identity theft is one of the most common forms of cybercrime. It is when a person uses someone else’s identifying information without the knowledge or approval of the owner. A criminal may use the person’s information to commit other crimes. They may also siphon money from the owner’s back account which may result in major financial losses (Wang & Huang, 2011). Phishing is the use of bogus emails, websites and other online materials to obtain people’s personal financial information. Most phishing attacks involve sending out spam messages that are intended to trigger the recipient’s intuitive interests (Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2015).

Hacking is breaking into a person’s or organization’s network or computer without permission. In most countries it is classified as a felony. Organizations use ethical hacking to check how secure their systems and network is. Criminals usually use various software to gain access. Victims might not even notice that someone is accessing their network or computers. Hacking crimes are usually difficult to assess because most victims especially organizations do not report the crimes out of embarrassment or fear of further breaches (Dennis, 2014). Billions of dollars are lost annually due to hacking. As a result, organizations today are investing in sophisticated security systems to prevent the losses that result from hacking.

Finding the best strategies and solutions to the cybercrime threat is a major challenge mostly in developing countries. According to McQuade (2006), the best anti-cybercrime strategy would involve legal instruments and technical protection measures which require a lot of time to develop and implement. In developing countries it is a challenge whether to integrate these measures from the beginning since it might raise the cost of internet services. The risk associated with lack of protection measures or investing in weak measures could have more adverse effects. It is important that both developing and developed countries come up with measures to promote cyber security (Wang & Huang, 2011). Developing countries are encouraged to develop anti-cybercrime strategies that are in line with international standards.