NCJ Number
247055
Date Published
June 2007
Length
59 pages
Annotation
This report details challenges faced by public and private sector entities in addressing cybercrime.
Abstract
The challenges to addressing cybercrime that were identified by this report include accurately reporting cybercrime to law enforcement; ensuring adequate law enforcement analytical and technical capabilities; working in a borderless environment with laws of multiple jurisdictions; and implementing information security practices and raising awareness about criminal behavior. The public and private entities charged with protecting against, detecting, investigating, and prosecuting cybercrime include Federal agencies such as the U.S. Departments of Justice, Homeland Security, and Defense; State and local law enforcement agencies; and private entities such as Internet service providers and software developers. Based on the challenges identified in this report, the GAO recommends that the U.S. Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security direct the head of the Secret Service to assess the impact of the current rotation approach on their respective law enforcement analytical and technical capabilities to investigate and prosecute cybercrime. Additional information is provided on key Federal laws used to investigate and prosecute cybercrime, a crime mitigation framework for addressing cybercrime, cybercrime techniques and the reported volume of these techniques, and the economic impact of cybercrime. Tables, figures, and appendixes