A report discussing the proposition that computer crime has increased dramatical

ly over the last 10 years.

Introduction
Computer crime is generally defined as any crime accomplished through special kn
owledge of computer technology. Increasing instances of white-collar crime invo
lve computers as more businesses automate and the information held by the comput
ers becomes an important asset. Computers can also become objects of crime when
they or their contents are damaged, for example when vandals attack the computer
itself, or when a "computer virus" (a program capable of altering or erasing co
mputer memory) is introduced into a computer system.
As subjects of crime, computers represent the electronic environment in which fr
auds are programmed and executed; an example is the transfer of money balances
in accounts to perpetrators' accounts for withdrawal. Computers are instruments
of crime when they are used to plan or control such criminal acts. Examples of
these types of crimes are complex embezzlements that might occur over long perio
ds of time, or when a computer operator uses a computer to steal or alter valuab
le information from an employer.
Variety and Extent
Since the first cases were reported in 1958, computers have been used for most k
inds of crime, including fraud, theft, embezzlement, burglary, sabotage, espiona
ge, murder, and forgery. One study of 1,500 computer crimes established that mos
t of them were committed by trusted computer users within businesses i.e. person
s with the requisite skills, knowledge, access, and resources. Much of known co
mputer crime has consisted of entering false data into computers. This method of
computer crime is simpler and safer than the complex process of writing a progr
am to change data already in the computer.
Now that personal computers with the ability to communicate by telephone are pre
valent in our society, increasing numbers of crimes have been perpetrated by com
puter hobbyists, known as "hackers," who display a high level of technical exper
tise. These "hackers" are able to manipulate various communications systems so
that their interference with other computer systems is hidden and their real ide
ntity is difficult to trace. The crimes committed by most "hackers" consist mai
nly of simple but costly electronic
trespassing, copyrighted-information piracy, and vandalism. There is also eviden
ce that organised professional criminals have been attacking and using computer
systems as they find their old activities and environments being automated.
Another area of grave concern to both the operators and users of computer system
s is the increasing prevalence of computer viruses. A computer virus is general
ly defined as any sort of destructive computer program, though the term is usual
ly reserved for the most dangerous ones. The ethos of a computer virus is an in
tent to cause damage, "akin to vandalism on a small scale, or terrorism on a gra
nd scale." There are many ways in which viruses can be spread. A virus can be
introduced to networked computers thereby infecting every computer on the networ
k or by sharing disks between computers. As more home users now have access to
modems, bulletin board systems where users may download software have increasing
ly become the target of viruses. Viruses cause damage by either attacking anoth
er file or by simply filling up the computer's memory or by using up the compute
r's processor power. There are a number of different types of viruses, but one
of the factors common to most of them is that they all copy themselves (or parts
of themselves). Viruses are, in essence, self-replicating.
We will now consider a "pseudo-virus," called a worm. People in the computer in
dustry do not agree on the distinctions between worms and viruses. Regardless,
a worm is a program specifically designed to move through networks. A worm may
have constructive purposes, such as to find machines with free resources that co
uld be more efficiently used, but usually a worm is used to disable or slow down
computers. More specifically, worms are defined as, "computer virus programs ..
. [which] propagate on a computer network without the aid of an unwitting human
accomplice. These programs move of their own volition based upon stored knowledg
e of the network structure."
Another type of virus is the "Trojan Horse." These viruses hide inside another
seemingly harmless program and once the Trojan Horse program is used on the com
puter system, the virus spreads. One of the most famous virus types of recent y
ears is the Time Bomb, which is a delayed action virus of some type. This type
of virus has gained notoriety as a result of the Michelangelo virus. This virus
was designed to erase the hard drives of people using IBM compatible computers o
n the artist's birthday. Michelangelo was so prevalent that it was even distri
buted accidentally by some software publishers when the software developers' com
puters became infected.

SYSOPs must also worry about being liable to their users as a result of viruses
which cause a disruption in service. Viruses can cause a disruption in
service or service can be suspended to prevent the spread of a virus. If the SY
SOP has guaranteed to provide continuous service then any disruption in service
could result in a breach of contract and litigation could ensue. However, contr
act provisions could provide for excuse or deferral of obligation in the event o
f disruption of service by a virus.
Legislation
The first federal computer crime law, entitled the Counterfeit Access Device and
Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1984, was passed in October of 1984.
The Act made it a felony to knowingly access a computer without authorisation, o
r in excess of authorisation, in order to obtain classified United States defen
ce or foreign relations information with the intent or reason to believe that su
ch information would be used to harm the United States or to advantage a foreign
nation.
The act also attempted to protect financial data. Attempted access to obtain in
formation from financial records of a financial institution or in a consumer fil
e of a credit reporting agency was also outlawed. Access to use, destroy, modif
y or disclose information found in a computer system, (as well as to prevent aut
horised use of any computer used for government business) was also made illegal.
The 1984 Act had several shortcomings, and was revised in The Computer Fraud an
d Abuse Act of 1986.
Three new crimes were added to the 1986 Act. These were a computer fraud offenc
e, modelled after federal mail and wire fraud statutes, an offence for the alter
ation, damage or destruction of information contained in a "federal interest com
puter", an offence for trafficking in computer passwords under some circumstance
s.
Even the knowing and intentional possession of a sufficient amount of counterfei
t or unauthorised "access devices" is illegal. This statute has been interprete
d to cover computer passwords "which may be used to access computers to wrongful
ly obtain things of value, such as telephone and credit card services."
Remedies and Law Enforcement
Business crimes of all types are probably decreasing as a direct result of incre
asing automation. When a business activity is carried out with computer and com
munications systems, data are better protected against modification,
destruction, disclosure, misappropriation, misrepresentation, and contamination.
Computers impose a discipline on information workers and facilitate use of alm
ost perfect automated controls that were never possible when these had to be app
lied by the workers themselves under management edict. Computer hardware and sof
tware manufacturers are also designing computer systems and programs that are mo
re resistant to tampering.
Recent U.S. legislation, including laws concerning privacy, credit card fraud an
d racketeering, provide criminal-justice agencies with tools to fight business
crime. As of 1988, all but two states had specific computer-crime laws, and a f
ederal computer-crime law (1986) deals with certain crimes involving computers i
n different states and in government activities.
Conclusion
There are no valid statistics about the extent of computer crime. Victims often
resist reporting suspected cases, because they can lose more from embarrassment
, lost reputation, litigation, and other consequential losses than from the acts
themselves. Limited evidence indicates that the number of cases is rising each
year because of the increasing number of computers in business applications whe
re crime has traditionally occurred. The largest recorded crimes involving insu
rance, banking, product inventories, and securities have resulted in losses of t
ens of millions to billions of dollars and all these crimes were facilitated by
computers.
Bibliography
Bequai, August, Techno Crimes (1986).
Mungo, Paul, and Clough, Bryan, Approaching Zero: The Extraordinary Underworld o
f Hackers, Phreakers, Virus Writers, and Keyboard Criminals (1993).
Norman, Adrian R. D., Computer Insecurity (1983).
Parker, Donn B., Fighting Computer Crime (1983).
Dodd S. Griffith, The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986: A Measured
Response to a Growing Problem, 43 Vand. L. Rev. 453, 455 (1990).