“$10,000 a day:” that’s the correction that needs to be made to my column of last Sunday. In describing how the Flashback Mac Botnet was making money for the Internet bad guys, the print version of my column somehow left out the “a day” part.
However, it’s the “a day” part that shows the real impact of Internet crime. At $10K a day, you’re making millions of dollars a year, and that’s why the bad guys do what they do; it’s real money, it’s big money and it’s easy money.
According to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (www.ic3.gov), over 300,000 complaints of Internet crime were reported in the United States in 2011. The adjusted dollar loss of complaints was $485.3 million. For victims reporting financial losses, the average was $4,187.
Keep in mind, though, those are only the figures for reported crimes; many Internet crimes go unreported. “Why,” you may ask, “would someone not report an Internet crime?” The answer is simple: publicity.
Nobody wants it known they got ripped off by an Internet porno site, or an illegal gambling operation. Just as bad could be news that money was lost to a bogus adult dating website, or one selling bootleg movies, songs and computer software. I have a good friend whose was recently victimized by an online credit card scam, even though I’ve been telling him for years he needs to take my computer safety class and learn how to avoid such troubles. Don’t worry, old pal, your secret is safe with me, but, come on, it’s time to get with the program.
In addition to individuals wanting to maintain their anonymity, large companies and institutions absolutely hate it when word gets out they have been hacked, scammed and ripped off on the Internet. Loss of customer confidence leads to lost revenue. Think about it: do you want to keep your money at a bank that can’t keep out the Internet bad guys? As a result, many crimes get buried, becoming corporate secrets.
According to Interpol, “More and more criminals are exploiting the speed, convenience and anonymity that modern technologies offer in order to commit a diverse range of criminal activities. In the past, cybercrime has been committed by individuals or small groups of individuals. However, we are now seeing an emerging trend with traditional organized crime syndicates and criminally minded technology professionals working together and pooling their resources and expertise.”
What this means is that Internet crime is big, big business run by organized crime groups like the Mafia. That includes the Italian Mafia, the Russian Mafia, the South American Mafia, the Chinese Mafia and the Little Dixie Mafia. One of the most important organized crime groups on the Internet is the Romanian Mafia, which runs a city by the Transylvanian Alps nicknamed “Hackersville.”
The global cost of cybercrime is easily in excess of $100 billion. As for corporate cyber espionage, cyber criminals have stolen intellectual property from businesses worldwide worth up to $1 trillion (2008 Interpol statistics).
While law enforcement does its best to get a handle on the situation, the rules remain the same. Remember, the government and the police cannot protect you from clicking on the wrong thing. You are your own best protection. Stay vigilant, stay educated and, most important of all, slow down and think.
If you see something you don’t understand, or something that seems to be the best deal in the universe, ask yourself, “What is this? Why is it there? Who put it there? Should I believe what it says?” Then, the all-critical question: “Should I click?”