In recent times I have noticed some concern from people who fear having committed telematic crimes or cybercrimes and the question has been asked repeatedly: " I did this and this, I can be reported"> can they trace me? " I am not a lawyer and I am not a policeman, an investigator or even a hacker, so I cannot give precise answers regarding the limits of the law and the criminal consequences of illegal actions on the internet
However, I think it is important to know, from a technical point of view, what " cybercrime " or " telematic crime " means today.
The best way is to list the 5 major categories of major offenses that are consumed daily on the internet, worldwide.
The Internet is the ideal place for collaboration, for the exchange of ideas and information and it is our greatest resource for building a better world, but it also has its dark side. Billions of dollars are made each year through a number of different cybercrimes and the victims are usually people like you and me.
My goal therefore is not only to understand what a computer crime is but, above all, how to defend yourself and not become a victim of it.
Let's start with a general consideration that may seem trivial but that many forget: what you do on the internet has reflections on the real world, what you shouldn't do in reality, shouldn't be done even behind the computer keyboard.
Many think they are hidden, they can say or do what they want, in spite of the law, morality and morality.
The postal and communications police is the Italian authority to which computer crimes and telematic crimes must be reported .
On his official website are listed the main illegal actions that are done with the computer.
On this page you can send the official report to the police station.
Trying to use a different approach, I group the possibilities of internet crime into 5 major categories with practical advice to stay away from it, to defend yourself and prevent their consequences.
1) Virus and Malware
If you use a computer, you are always vulnerable to malware.
A virus today is no longer like those of 10 years ago that "erase the hard disk" or "break the computer" because it works by ingenious hackers who are looking for holes in the systems.
Viruses have become much smarter.
They are hidden programs that allow criminals to use a PC remotely and do whatever they want with it.
For example, there are malware that infect the computer and then ask the user for money to get rid of it by buying software.
There are worse viruses that use the computer of the unwitting victim to exploit the CPU (the computing power) or to self-replicate and create communication bridges.
I'm not talking about science fiction but real and widespread cases: a hacker who intends to launch an attack on a government or an institution, will use a network of compromised machines (called botnets ) to do it and to hide.
In another post all types of malware and differences between Trojans, Worms and Viruses are explained.
Of course, whatever the motivation, a virus is always a damage and a drain on computer resources so it is better to be protected against them and, as already said, you can use antivirus and antilmalware also for free, to do manual scans and to real time protection.
For virus prevention it is important not to download programs from untrusted sites, whether you are using Windows, Linux or Mac.
Also avoid using pirated programs if you are not really expert: Using cracked software may seem like a good way to save money, but I have seen people forced to throw away their PC and reformat it in search of these crack.
In general, you never stop repeating that you just need to use common sense before opening any type of file.
the postal police define hackers and crackers and consider them punishable by Italian law.
2) Identity theft
The concept is simple: someone takes your name on the internet and manages, thanks to scammer skills, to access your personal information, to use it to their advantage, to make blackmail, to reach other people.
I had already written about identity theft regarding Facebook in particular (avoid getting your profile identity and password stolen) and on the internet in general (online reputation).
This type of crime however is not mentioned by the Italian police therefore I believe it is not a crime unless it turns into stalking or cyberbullying (of which I speak in point 3).
Identity theft that becomes a real crime and that is practiced by criminal hackers is what concerns bank data .
Referring in this regard to the guide to protect bank accounts, I would like to highlight the most important things:
- never share personal information related to money, on the Internet, via Email, via chat or through any other means of communication, not even by telephone.
- When accessing the bank's website, always check that the address begins with " https " instead of " http "; this means that the connection to the site is secure.
- Never use your credit card on an E-commerce site that you don't trust.
- If you receive an email from the bank, credit card, eBay, Paypal or any other service with access to financial information and you are asked to update "your personal information ", always ignore it.
Make sure you are very familiar with the interface of all such sites, because the counterfeiters are very good and can take advantage of the carelessness of the people.
- Never believe that you have won money via Email and never accept money transfers from strangers.
3) Cyberstalking
This is the most debated topic on the page concerning the traceability and location of a computer on the internet.
So in this case you really have to make a parallel with reality: if I insult someone in words, once, and this denounces me, as far as he can get he did first to respond to the insult and end the thing.
If I insult one every day, repeatedly, then it can become Stalking.
If you come to threats, always repeatedly over time, I am certainly in a crime.
The same also applies to repeated threats and insults via Email or via Facebook or via the internet.
If then we operate anonymously, then it depends on the seriousness of the situation.
Personally, if I received anonymous insults today, they would all fall into the spam folder and I wouldn't even notice it.
For threats, the discussion may be different, but in that case, a lawyer must really be consulted.
Cyberstalking in general is a crime and a crime and it is essentially the use of the Internet to repeatedly annoy another person .
This includes sexual harassment, threats, profanity and violent behavior.
The joke is not a crime, even if in bad taste or offensive, if done only once.
The postal police, depending on the seriousness of the situation, have the means and capabilities to track anyone, if they want to (for this kind of crime, you really have to make it big).
4) Child pornography and pedophilia
So on this crime I can guarantee that the police will use all their energy to trace and prosecute those who share images or videos of this type.
This is the most serious and worst crime on the internet, a real crime that no authority in the world will ever let go unpunished.
If you end up on sites with such content by chance, don't hesitate to report the web page on the police website.
The protection of children who surf the web also falls within this context.
I have already given my advice in the past to protect children on the internet, the most important things are:
- Install and use the parental control software on all computers.
- Know which sites your child is attending and monitor his online activity, especially in chats to avoid being baited.
- Teach how to use the computer and what scams and dangers are always lurking.
5) Spam
The most irritating offense of which it is almost impossible not to fall victim.
Spam consists of unauthorized advertising mail messages .
Unfortunately spam is a means of making a lot of money: a famous spammer captured last year sent 10 billion emails a day to the whole world using a network of infected computers (the botnet I mentioned in point 1) and earned about $ 10 million a year.
Spam is illegal in many countries and is a serious and criminal offense.
To defend yourself, the best thing is to read the online security guide against hackers, phishing and cyber criminals .
For e-mail, it is better to use a good e-mail box, which already has anti-spam filters: the best ones to create an E-mail address are Gmail, Yahoo Mail and Outlook.
It is not convenient, in my opinion, to use the antispam programs I wrote about some time ago because they are complicated to use.
Never leave your email address unencrypted on forum or blog pages and, when registering on sites, consider using anonymous and temporary email addresses.
Conclusion
The Internet is like real life, there are criminals, scammers and more.
Each computer on Earth can theoretically be traced but requires work and investigation which will be employed depending on the seriousness of a crime or a crime.
If you want to share experiences, the comments are free and uncensored, but only I ask for an extreme summary.
For legal questions, needless to ask here, I am not a lawyer and I would not be able to answer precisely.
