NCJ Number
83726
Date Published
1981
Length
95 pages
Annotation
Computer technology is so advanced that it is impossible to secure computers from such crimes as theft, fraud, and embezzlement; the illegal use of private and proprietary information; the disruption of the financial telecommunications system; and internal and external sabotage.
Abstract
The limits of technology are being approached in the areas of physical security and audit procedures. Thus, the solution of the computer crime problem will not be found in these fields. The real problem in computer security is a people problem. In addition, it is far more often an internal security problem than a problem of externally directed sabotage by terrorists or predatory competitors. The next wave of technology in computer security must come from the behavioral sciences. Among issues which must be explored are the personal qualities and personality factors which lead employees to commit computer-related crimes and other computer abuses and factors in the work environment which foster computer crime and computer abuse. The work environment in which data processing and other white-collar workers are employed and the conditions in that environment which may foster criminal behavior have received too little research attention. The nature of computer crime, theories regarding white-collar crime, and strategies for dealing with white-collar and computer crime are presented. Appendixes present training materials, checklists, and forms. (Author summary modified)