NCJ Number
174890
Journal
Journal of Financial Crime Volume: 4 Issue: 3 Dated: January 1997 Pages: 242-244
Date Published
1997
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This paper discusses how the Internet presents attractive opportunities for various types of fraud, notably securities fraud, and the difficulties of countering such fraud.
Abstract
Individual investors are being offered the same fraudulent schemes that existed before the Internet. The difference now is the technology and the glamour that can make fraudulent appeals more attractive and more accessible to prospective victims. Because of the Internet's amorphous nature, companies face a heightened level of susceptibility to insider trading, taking hits from short sellers and misinformation that can undermine an orderly market. Among the first questions a company could face are how to monitor Internet news, how to counter deceptive and misleading information, how to identify those who spread it, who can be used, and what jurisdiction applies. Thousands of messages are posted daily on Internet news groups, bulletin boards, and online chat rooms by persons whose identity may be unknown and whose messages may be misinformation. On top of the disarray that already exists for companies because of the Internet, further complications are likely to follow with liberalized rules by pro- business advocates who would permit virtually any business to sell stock without regulatory approval. So-called offshore banking and investment programs are proliferating on the Web. Among them are jurisdictions that are generally not considered traditional offshore venues and have been known in the past as sources of fraudulent financial operations. The use of the Internet as a medium for fraud is beyond the control of regulators. It is clear that the unregulated Internet is a long- term threat to the world's established stock exchanges and shareholder value.