Busting Cyber Crime

How safe is the global village? It's getting safer every day! There's a new sheriff in town, and it's you!

Have you spotted any scams or spams lately? If you have, then you can consider yourself officially deputized. Join the posse, and let's clean up this web-town!

What kinds of crimes occur online?

Internet crime and scams may take a variety of forms: bomb threats, copyright infringement, counterfeiting, credit card theft, fake auctions, financial fraud, hacking, harassment, identity theft, insider trading, phishing attacks, password trafficking, piracy, pornography, viruses, security breaches, spammers, spyware, stealing trade secrets, theft of intellectual property, trademark violation, and more.

What can you do, if it happens to you?

If you have been victimized, or if you suspect a cyber-crime has been committed, you will need to report this to the proper authorities. Where do you begin?

First, if you have been threatened, and if you are concerned that the internet predator may know your real-life identity and location, then you must go directly to your local law enforcement authorities. Call 911, if the threat is urgent or you are in physical danger.

Be sure to retain all relevant e-mails, instant messages, file attachments and other materials that may prove to be relevant to the case. These will be valuable for tracing the perpetrators. Also, an official report demands the presence and signature of the actual victim or witness, not a third-party source.

Where can you file a complaint?

Every internet user has the ability and authority to report online crime.

Several federal agencies investigate cyber crime in the United States. Try to select the agency most relevant to the offense you have experienced or witnessed.