Computer Crime

Computer crime is a very broad term. It could mean anything from a total invasion by a hacker into the federal government or just the simple fact of one person letting another borrow a copy of his favorite flying game. Computers are defined in the dictionary as a machine that computes (WBD vol. 23). But to most people it is a machine that's helps us do a task easier. As we move into the 21th century though one thing is for sure, the computer will help crime become more prevalent.

Hackers are probably one of the more common threats out there. These are the people who use modems and telephone lines to enter your computer. A teenager sits across the table yelling, "I want this and this and this….". This is not a kid talking to his parents; it is a hacker talking to the business he just hacked into. Whenever you think about it, the idea of a teenager being able to make a big software firm grovel like that is pretty amazing. This is a site often seen though. When a company is hacked into it often hires its predators as protectors (Glass 11). If companies do not come forward to claim that they have been infiltrated how are these hackers supposed to be prosecuted. This is a serious issue being faced today by the federal government. In an article by Stephen Glass he quotes a radio advertisement by the Nevada law-enforcement officials. They were so desperate the advertisement ran "Would you hire a shoplifter to watch the cash register? Please don't deal with hackers." The state took the airwaves after a boy had broken into a department stores computer system and made it credit $500 a day to his Visa card. The boy had racked up $32,000 before being caught. But, the store did not prosecute. Instead they let the boy keep his money, all in exchange for showing them how to improve their security (Glass 11). Also cases have been reported of government agencies being hacked into. If the government is worried about a hackers' invasion with their security system what is the American people to do.

Hackers and computer criminals also use computer viruses to either do some odd job or just reek havoc. "Virus" is the one computer-security buzzword that has made its way into the mainstream. Most people do not know exactly what one is, but that it's bad.

These viruses are simply a piece of software written with one key distinction: it has the desire to create clones of itself. There are many types of viruses. The Trojan Horse viruses are viruses that make you think they re doing one thing while they actually do something totally different. Time Bomb viruses go off when a certain conditions of a date is met. Logic Bomb viruses start their effects when the user types in a certain word or words (Schwartau 95-110). Viruses are something that we should all worry about. There are certain programs out there that can detect and eliminate viruses.

Another form of crime happening on the Internet