Date: February 10, 2005
Written By: Lisa Guerriero
The call sounded like an advertisement for a credit card security plan.
Someone in London had purchased a piece of Americana, a toy tractor from Ohio, with the credit card number of an Old Colony Road resident. Capital One credit card company called Wakefield police to report a case of identity theft.
The criminal's tool was the Internet, a growing challenge for law enforcement all over the world. Wakefield Police Department handled roughly 50 cybercrime cases last year, but Det. Sgt. Gerald Curran believes that many more cases go unreported.
"We only see a small portion," Curran said, because many victims cut their losses for one reason or another.
One typical scenario is the bait and switch: An unsuspecting buyer pays for an item they don't receive, or a resident sends property but doesn't receive payment. The losses range from "Beverly Hills 90210" cassettes to sport utility vehicles, and up to thousands of dollars.
"It could be anything," Curran said.
Identity thefts like the Old Colony Road case involve a savvy thief who apprehends personal data like social security number, bank account number and credit card number, and uses it to rack up debts. Personal information might be stolen in any number of ways: Through the Internet, through scams, rigging ATM machines or watching someone type a pin number, from ATM and credit card receipts and mail theft.
Raising the red flag so the letter carrier takes your outgoing mail is also "a flag for someone looking to steal something," Curran said.
Some thieves even root through trash, a practice often called dumpster diving. Stolen information has been a problem for law enforcement for years, but it can easily be exploited on the Internet.
"It's one more layer that the well-versed thief has to use," said Wakefield Lt. John MacKay.
The ugly side of the Internet
Wakefield police have dealt with some of the ugliest Internet criminals, sexual predators and child pornographers. Predators are an international problem, with adults trying to entice children into chat rooms and, in some cases, face-to-face meetings. Predators may admit their age and identity, or masquerade as a teenager.
Pornograpy is also a global dilemma. In one case a couple years ago, a Wakefield man was downloading child pornography from Europe. Federal investigators got a warrant and seized the computer, and a computer forensics expert extracted evidence from the hard drive. The man was eventually sentenced to a federal penitentiary.
State Police and the state Attorney General's Office have forensics capabilities, but many local police departments can't afford the training and equipment. That's where NEMLEC comes in.
Wakefield and 41 other communities have pooled knowledge and resources through NEMLEC, the North East Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council.
Medford's Lt. John McClean is an expert in computer forensics and an author on the subject. If Wakefield police need to retrieve data from a computer, they can send it to McClean.
"In some cases (other police departments) come directly to us, especially in emergencies. We also get contacted sometime from the very beginning and sometimes towards the end of a case, after arrest and after they seize a computer system," McClean said.
One case for NEMLEC arose when a teacher at a local school was downloading "inappropriate" subject matter on a computer, and NEMLEC searched the computer for evidence.
"We have to prioritize all the cases we work on, based on the volume alone," McClean said. "We never take any chances with children at risk or crimes in progress."
Who you gonna call?
Networking groups like NEMLEC help alleviate the burden that cybercrime "adds to an already strained law enforcement," MacKay said.
Wakefield police used to have five officers working on cybercrime cases, but these days that number is down to three, and one of them is on "light duty" after an injury.
Wakefield also collaborates with the Hi-tech Crime Investigation Assoc., an international group that connects law enforcement, prosecutors and private companies. The association provides valuable networking opportunities for local police.
"You make a lot of contacts with these people, so when something happens outside your jurisdiction, you can pick up the phone," Curran said.
In one case, a Wakefield resident was the victim of Internet threats. Police traced the harasser's location to London, and Wakefield police tapped HTCIA to continue the investigation
The vast majority of cybercrimes are financial and fraud related. Curran said the National White Collar Crime Center acts as a clearinghouse, notifying local police about perpetrators or victims in town.
Local perpetrators, like a man who collected thousands of dollars for DVDs he never sent, are taken to court in hopes of recovering the cash.
But many victims never see their money, because the thief didn't leave a trail for police to follow, or because the perpetrator is not in the area.
"There isn't a lot we can do with many cases because the people we need to go after aren't in our jurisdiction," Curran said.
Many police departments in the U.S. and abroad are unable or unwilling to pursue many Internet larcenies, especially ones of lesser value, Curran said.
But the idea of anonymity on the Internet is a myth, police say.
"All criminals leave traces and trails back to themselves. Just like a crime scene, when you touch something or visit somewhere there are "tracks'," McClean said. "Even in a virtual world of 0's and 1's, digital evidence can be present. For instance, people think they deleted a file and it really is not deleted and the information and/or associated evidence pertaining to that file/application/program might still be intact as artifacts."
Protecting your interests
Avoiding cybercrime isn't easy, Curran said. Many people are successful buying or selling merchandise via the Internet, while others suffer losses even through credible Web sites.
Find out as much as possible about the seller, whether it's a company or an individual, Curran advises. Beware of legitimate sales sites that provide links to Web sites they don't regulate.
The cardinal rule of preventing cyber-theft is never give out financial information like bank and credit card account numbers or a social security number - a legitimate company will never ask for that kind of data.
When it comes to keeping children safe, police say education is the first step. Tell kids what they might encounter on the Web and that it's never OK to tell someone their real name, address or other personal information. It's wise to keep computers in a common room, not the child's bedroom, so parents can monitor.
Inappropriate material can easily reach children, Curran said: Searching for shoes could turn up a Web site for a foot fetishist.
Medford's expert, McClean, said computers need to be cleansed to prevent cybercrimes.
"Computers need to be constantly updated with virtual protection, intrusion protection and security updates," he said.
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