#173 June, 2005

Online Crime in charge of the Internet?

While this may seem like an uncomprehensible statement, considering the facts you realize it could be true.

As long as there has been money there have been criminals. And, as long as there has been law enforcement, the criminals, for the most part, have managed to stay one step ahead of apprehension.

When the Internet became graphical -- sometime around 1993 -- the crooks have taken great strides in purveying the most amount of filth to the most number of people with the least amount of time or cost. With the Internet, the porno industry exploded and has been leading the way in covert technology ever since. Of course they gave many rather bright ideas to the organized crime industry.

When the commercialized internet began to emerge, criminals embraced the technology with relish. Never before had there been so many easy opportunities to make substantial amounts of money, very quickly, with little or no risk of even being detected by law enforcement; much less apprehended. With the Internet, the burglar no longer has to leave the lair or worry about any lack of ready, willing victims. Today, knocking off thousands of people at mouse-point is a profitable daily activity.

It took government and law enforcement nearly five years to recognize the threat -- and another two years to figure out what it actually is. Fortunately, consumers are beginning to catch on. The Internet crime wave (after a dozen years of free reign) is now facing a slight change in consumer behavior. But it's too little, too late to do much about it.

The software industry was quicker in recognizing the problem but slower in bringing forth solutions -- but they too are driven by profit. Their barrage of remedies gave no more of a cure than a witch-doctor's elixir.

It's not surprising that nearly 7 in 10 home Internet users, or about 93 million Americans, have experienced at least one problem associated with unwanted software. Playing off statistics from the Pew Internet & American Life Project* (PIALP) Information Week's Antone Gonsalves is reporting that more than 80% of online computer users admit that Online Crime has changed their online behavior (7/6/05). PIALP's ongoing research keeps the pulse of social effects of the Internet on Americans with a running tabulation of what people think. In their non-profit research study, we learn that the mere threat of spyware and viruses has caused the majority of consumers to stop opening e-mail attachments, among other things. Additionally, we are seeing 50% now avoid visiting websites they fear getting "infected" with unwanted software. One in four said they had stopped downloading music or video files from peer-to-peer networks. More importantly, 20% said they started using a different web browser to avoid software intrusions.

[* PIALP Report, article: informationweek.com]

Online Crime now in charge of the Internet?

Not so far fetched if organized crime is driving internet development, and millions of users are modifying their behavior because of it. The big challenge on the hands of honest people is in shortening the time between the launch of new criminal software or methods and the defense against them.

Today we're faced with the onslaught of spyware and pharming -- both fairly new tools in the organized crime arsenal. This time Congress and law enforcement caught on relatively quickly -- about a year and a half. Since a consumer remedy is yet to be invented, our most important and most powerful defense is still education. If people don't click, they won't get tricked.

So we all need to get to work on that other 50% of the populace and teach them to protect themselves by not sharing their personal information.

No clicks, No Tricks

And if you don't believe me, then read: this report and testimony delivered by Dr. F. Thomson Leighton, Co-Founder and Chief Scientist, Akamai Technologies, Inc., Professor of Applied Mathematics, MIT, before the Committee on Science U.S. House of Representatives Hearing on "The Future of Computer Science Research in the U.S." Thursday, May 12, 2005 [PDF: leighton_phishing.pdf]

It's scary stuff.

Then contract your legislative representitive to support H.R. 744: Internet Spyware (I-SPY) Prevention Act of 2005, sponsored by Representative Robert Goodlatte [R-VA] to amend title 18, United States Code, to discourage spyware, and for other purposes. [PDF: goodlatte_spyware.pdf] This is the first legislation to appropriate funds to fight spyware, phishing and pharming. (See: "Pharming" in the User Group Network's Safe Netting department.)

More detailed information is available from the Federal Trade Commission: FTC Report on Spyware [TEXT] [PDF]

Is Someone "Phishing" for Your Information? FTC Report on Phishing [TEXT] [PDF]

How Not to Get Hooked by a 'Phishing' Scam. FTC Guide to Phishing [TEXT] [PDF]

The sooner everyone learns to protect themselves, the sooner we'll choke off the revenue streams to online crime.

Thanks for reading...

Fred Showker
 
      "Let us be thankful for the fools.
        But for them the rest of us could not succeed."
            Mark Twain

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