Transcript Computer Crime

Computer Crime
• The Internet has opened the door to new kinds
of crime and new ways of carrying out
traditional crimes.
• Computer crime is any act that violates state or
federal laws and involves using a computer.
• The term cybercrime often refers specifically to
crimes carried out by means of the Internet.
• Due to computer crime, businesses lose money
in the following ways: staff time, downtime, and
bad publicity
Computer Crime cont.
• Even if intruders steal nothing from a business, they still
cost companies money.
• Staff must make the network secure again and consider
how to stop security breaches.
• Security breaches also cost a company in terms of
downtime, or a temporary stop to work.
• System administrators sometimes shut a network down
to prevent the loss of data.
• While the system is down, workers cannot do their jobs.
• A company can lose business if customers are affected by
downtime.
Computer Crime cont.
• Many companies refuse to announce that a
computer crime has been committed against
them.
• If customers learn that someone has stolen their
personal information from a company’s network,
they may decide that the company is not able to
keep such information safe.
• This can cause customers to stop doing business
with the company.
Computer Crime cont.
• There are many different kinds of computer
crime. Some of them require criminals to have a
deep knowledge of programming.
• A virus is a program that performs one or more
tasks that the user doesn’t expect.
• Some viruses are designed to do real harm, such
as delete files, slow down network traffic, disable
programs, or allow an unauthorized person to
access the victim’s computer.
• Most viruses are designed to hide themselves,
avoiding detection by the victim for as long as
possible.
Computer Crime cont.
• If a virus is copied to your computer, the
machine is said to be “infected.”
• A virus can infect your computer in a number of
ways.
▫ You might receive an infected disk from a friend.
▫ You might download an infected file from a Web site .
▫ You might receive it attached to an e-mail message.
• Most viruses can affect only the operating
system in which they were written, but they can
spread from one computer to another.
Computer Crime cont.
• A macro virus takes advantage of the macro
languages in application programs, such as word
processors or spreadsheets.
• Macro viruses launch themselves when an
infected file is opened.
• These viruses are different from normal viruses
because they can work on different operating
systems.
Computer Crime cont.
• The most common computer viruses work by hiding
inside another program.
• When you run the program, the virus activates and does
its work.
• A worm is a type of virus that doesn’t need to be hidden
inside another program. However, they are hidden
inside document files in the form of macros.
• In most cases, a worm’s job is to replicate itself as much
as possible, consuming the victim’s disks and memory.
• Worms often spread by traveling through network
connections.
• Many e-mail viruses are actually worms.
• They distribute themselves by creating e-mail messages
and mailing themselves to other computers.
Computer Crime cont.
• A Trojan horse is a program that does something
useful but at the same time, hidden from view,
does something destructive.
• It can damage the system it enters, including
erasing all the data on a hard drive.
• A Trojan horse might come in the form of a
simple game. When the victim plays the game,
the program does something else in the
background, such as opening a port on the
computer.
• Someone can then use this port to access the
computer through the Internet.
Computer Crime cont.
• Some computer crimes have nothing to do with
programming.
• Criminals use a computer to commit theft.
• Internet advertisements and e-mail messages
might claim that you can make huge sums of
money with very little effort. All you have to do is
send money to receive full instructions.
• This is a scam—just a trick to get your money.
Computer Crime cont.
• Another type of cybercrime is fraud.
• When someone steals your personal
information, her or she can impersonate you and
make credit card purchases in your name or
access your bank accounts.
• This leaves you with bills and a damaged credit
rating.
Computer Crime cont.
• The vast majority of computer thefts occur “on
the inside” (by employees), leaving no signs of
forced entry.
• The hardest crime to detect is memory shaving.
• In this act, a thief steals some of a computer’s
memory chips but leaves enough so the
computer will start. The crime might go
unnoticed for days or weeks.
• Some Web servers are not properly secured. As a
result, intruders can vandalize a Web site by
placing prank material on it.
Computer Crime cont.
• One kind of computer crime is very wide-spread.
It is called software piracy, the illegal copying of
computer programs.
• One business group estimates that about one
third of all software in use is pirated.
• Most programs that people buy are licensed only
to the purchaser. It is illegal to accept a copy of
software from someone else or for you to copy a
program and give it to a friend.
• Software piracy causes software publishers to
lose money.
Cybercrime Techniques
• Many cybercrimes are based on the ability of people to
tap illegally into computer networks.
• Some intruders develop programs that try many
different passwords until one works.
• This is called scanning, or probing.
• Networks can be blocked from scanners by limiting the
number of failed attempts to log onto the system.
• After three password failures, the network can refuse
access.
• This limits scanners’ chances to determine a valid
password.
Cybercrime Techniques cont.
• A program called a superzapper allows authorized users
to access a network in an emergency situation by
skipping security measures.
• In the hands of an intruder, a superzapper opens the
possibility of damage to the system.
• Some intruders spoof, or use a false Internet Protocol
(IP) or e-mail address to gain access.
• Intruders assume the IP address of a trusted source to
enter a secure network. Using that address, they send emails that have destructive attachments, such as viruses.
• The recipient opens the attachments, letting the virus
damage the system.
Cybercrime Techniques cont.
• A time bomb is a program that sits on a system
until a certain event or set of circumstances
activates the program.
• Some employees may create a trap door, or a
secret way into the system.
• Once they quit working for an employer, they
can use this to access the system and damage it.
• Not all trap doors are viruses, but some viruses
are trap doors. Many Trojan horse programs, act
as trap doors.
Cybercrime Techniques cont.
• Law enforcement officials are using technology
to catch cybercriminals. Several groups have
taken part in this effort:
▫ Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section
(CCIPS)-The Department of Justice created a
special group known as CCIPS to advise and train
federal prosecutors and local law enforcement on
cybercrime. They review and propose new laws.
They coordinate international efforts to combat
computer crime and prosecute offenders.
Cybercrime Techniques cont.
▫ Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Project
(CHIP)-In the CHIP project, law enforcement officials
and prosecutors work closely together to pursue
cybercrime. CHIP offices are in areas with a heavy
concentration of computer companies.
▫ National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC)-In
1998, government officials became worried about
terrorist attacks on U.S. computer systems. Staffed by
people from intelligence agencies and private
companies such as Internet service providers, the
NIPC ensures that the nation’s computer system could
continue to operate in the case of an attack.