CYBER WATCH with Brent MacLean
TAMING THE MENACE
T
here is no arguing that the Internet has become a conduit for crime. All over the world cybercrime has firmly planted it- self and taken deep root in the form of anti- social, anti-national and criminal activities. Today, cybercrime is probably the most talked-about form of crime in North America. Parents worry about pedophiles using the Internet to access their children, businesses spend enormous amounts of money to protect their computer systems from hackers, and many individuals will not use the Internet to shop because they are worried about the security of their credit card information. Is all of this worry or hysteria justified? Or is it simply a case of fearing an ever-changing technology? Cybercrime has various forms ranging from hacking to phishing to spoofing to cyber defamation, and everything in be- tween. Regardless of the name, all cy-
10 SECURITY MATTERS • JULY/AUGUST 2010
bercrime, for the most part, has one main purpose: to steal data for the pur- pose of financial gain. Although, some terrorist groups are deftly using the In- ternet for passing on information with re- gard to executing various terrorist acts, thus having serious negative impact on human life.
Cyber terrorists have even acquired the capability to penetrate computer systems using “logic bombs” (i.e., coded devices that can be remotely detonated), electro- magnetic pulses and high-emission radio frequency guns, which blow a devastating electronic wind through a computer system. The hacker community has even gone to the extent of distributing free hacking software (e.g., rootkits) to enable an intruder to get root access to a network and then control it as though they were the system’s administrators.
Cybercrime is a growing epidemic the world over, one that is becoming extremely difficult for law
enforcement agencies to detect, investigate and prosecute
Many instances of cybercrime involve techno-trespass and unauthorized access to the computer system and data or pro- grams stored in computers. This access could be without authorization or ex- ceeding the authorization given to an in- dividual. The unauthorized access may lead to theft, alteration or destruction of data, tampering with computer programs or other software, damage to computers or computer systems including destruc- tion of data stored on hard disks, flash drives and CD-ROMs. Broadly speaking, computer-related crimes can be categorized into two categories: • Computer as Target of the Crime — includes sabotage of computer systems or computer networks; sabotage of op- erating systems and programs; theft of data/information (this is the fastest growing computer-related crime); theft of intellectual property, such as com- puter software; theft of marketing infor- mation; and blackmail based on information gained from computerized files, such as medical information, per- sonal history, sexual preferences, fi- nancial data, etc.
• Computer as an Instrument Facili- tating Crime — most vivid example is the recent attack on Parliament Hill where the Internet was used in a variety of ways — e-mail and flash-encrypted messages — to perpetrate the crime. Other examples are: fraudulent use of Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cards and accounts; credit card frauds; frauds involving electronic fund trans- fers; telecommunication frauds; and frauds relating to Electronic Commerce and Electronic Data Interchange.
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