Four Common Computer Crimes

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Despite the fact that computers have become an important part in the lives of individuals and institutions, computers have indirectly opened a way for the existence of new unethical behaviors and different methods to commit abnormal acts and crimes using computers.
We need to acknowledge how to protect ourselves from different computer crimes by having a security awareness .In this chapter we will discuss four common computer crimes, they are:
1. cyber stalk
2. Internet fraud
3. identity theft
4. online piracy

8.1: Cyber stalk

Cyber stalk is a constant monitoring and harassment to the victim by using electronic communication. For example, publishing false accusations that affect victim 's reputation, sending anonymous e-mails for the purpose …show more content…

This is the only way to make sure that you are visiting the real website not a fake website that looks similar to the real one. o Make sure that your device is secure and also the website you are visiting is safe and secure. o Ignore ads and pop-ups.
If you have become a victim of Internet Fraud, report your situation immediately. Internet Fraud can possibly lead to Identity Theft which we will discuss in the upcoming section.

8.3: Identity theft
Identity theft is using a stolen identity electronically to get access to specific resources, get benefits, or even commit different crimes under the name of the victim. See figure below that illustrates the concept of identity theft Figure 20: figure that simplifies the concept of identity theft
A stolen identity results from unauthorized access to sensitive, personal data such as full name, birthdate, current location, work place. Most importantly, credit card number and social security number.
Tips from Cyber Smart - a national cyber safety and cyber security education program– on how to avoid Identity Theft:
 Monitor your content - if you suspect your profile has been hacked shut it down as soon as possible.
 Use secure websites for online shopping and …show more content…

 Don’t respond to calls or emails from banks asking for passwords or other details. If the email asks you to click on a link, chances are it’s a scam. If you receive a call from someone saying they’re from the bank, hang up and call back on their publicly listed number to see if it’s real.

8.4:Online Piracy
Online piracy is an illegal use, copy , or sale of software programs and operating systems that has clear business ownership.

Methods of piracy has developed as technology grew day by day to the extent that it became very common to find a website that provides free software programs , movies and music without permission from the owners. Online piracy has led to a huge amount of financial losses. In addition, online piracy is considered a serious crime in a lot of countries. See figure below that shows FBI anti-piracy warning.

Figure 21: figure that shows FBI warning regarding the issue of online piracy

In conclusion, we have discussed in this chapter four common, serious computer crimes and they are: cyber stalk, internet fraud, identity theft and online

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