What is Cybercrime?

Cybercrime is when people use computers and the Internet to do various criminal activities. Main examples of cybercrime are peer-to-peer networking, spamming, and copyright. Other ways to commit cybercrime are illegal access, illegal interception, data and system interference and the misuse of technology. But cybercrime is not really a new "type" of crime. People used fraud and theft before computers were invented, so it is safe to say that cybercrime is just an extension of existing criminal behavior. Also, it is hard for police to prosecute; long distances, jurisdictions and international laws may become involved.

Personal Information

Australia's Problems in 2005 Type of Cybercrime Commited Instances Interception of Telecommunications 2 Telecommunications Fraud 4 Sabotage of Data/Networks 5 Financial Fraud 5 System Penetration 6 Theft of Hand-Held Computers 8 Website Defacement 8 Identity Theft 7 Theft/Breach of Proprietary or Confidential Information 14 Unauthorized Access to Privileged Information by Insider 18 Unauthorized Privilege Access 18 Theft of Other Computer Hardware or Devices 22 Degradation of Network Performance Associated with Heavy Scanning 22 Denial of Service Attack 25 Laptop Theft 53 Virus/Worm/Trojan Infection 65

Costs in Millions of Cybercrime Type of Cybercrime Commited Costs Interception of Telecommunications $200,000 Telecommunications Fraud $300,000 Sabotage of Data/Networks $200,000 Financial Fraud $2,500,000 System Penetration $500,000 Theft of Hand-Held Computers $75,000 Website Defacement $10,000 Identity Theft $3,000,000 Theft/Breach of Proprietary or Confidential Information $2,500,000 Unauthorized Access to Privileged Information by Insider $200,000 Unauthorized Privilege Access $300,000 Theft of Other Computer Hardware or Devices $450,000 Degradation of Network Performance Associated with Heavy Scanning $1,750,000 Denial of Service Attack $500,000 Laptop Theft $1,600,000 Virus/Worm/Trojan Infection $7,100,000

Your Turn

What Can You Do?