Hindi maipagkakailang lalong nagiging tanyag ang pag gamit ng mga mobile devices. Sa kabila nito, lalo din namang nadadagdagan ang bilang ng mga cyber crimes. Sa ngayon, ang internet ay accessible o bukas halos sa lahat, gamit ang smartphones at iba pang digital devices. Ito ang isa sa malalaking dahilan upang ang mga maykapangyarihan ay maghanap ng makabagong paraan upang labanan ang ganitong uri ng mga krimen. Hindi na umuubra ang mga nakagawiang paraan; kailangan ang maparaang pagharap dito, gamit din ang teknolohiyang gamit ng mga cyber criminals.

Sa state ng California sa United States of America, itinatag ang bagong eCrime Unit upang manghuli at maglitis ng mga internet crooks. Ang team na ito ay binuo ng isang state attorney general at kinabibilangan ng dalawampung abogado at imbestigador. Bihasa sila sa mga makabagong paraan upang matunton at matukoy ang mga maysala. Kabilang sa mga tinututukan ng team na ito ay mga email scams, piracy, child pornography, online fraud, at marami pang iba. Kawawa lamang ang mga taong nabiktima at patuloy na nabibiktima mapa-offline man o mapa-online.

Naipakulong na ng team ang isang lalaking nahatulan ng guilty sa kasong hacking ng mga email at Facebook accounts. Marami nang nabiktima ang lalaking ito na ang karaniwang modus ay pasukin ang account ng ibang user. Pagkatapos ay maghahanap siya ng mga kontrobersiyal na larawan ng may-ari ng account. Tatakutin niya ito na ikakalat sa internet ang mga larawan kapag hindi sinunod ang gusto niya.

Ang internet ay napakahalaga sa ekonomiya, sa mga tao, at sa mga negosyo. Dahil dito, hindi na kailangang maghanap ng biktima ang mga cyber criminals. Napakaraming maaaring maging biktima ng pagnanakaw ng mga impormasyon. Ang taong 2012 ay nakikinikinitang magiging taon ng matinding pakikipaglaban sa online crimes. Naranasan noong isang taon ang napakaraming mga scams at inaasahang marami pang darating ngayong taon.

Ito naman ang dahilan ng pagpapaigting ng kampanya laban sa ecrime. Ang bagong eCrime Unit ay naglalayong makagawa ng isang bagong trend ng pakikipaglaban sa online crimes. Sinabi ng attorney general mula California na gusto nilang manguna sa makabagong paraan sa paghahanap at paglilitis ng mga maysala. Gamit ang internet technology na siya ring gamit ng mga criminal, mapatutunayang ang batas ay mangingibabaw sa lahat ng oras.

For every increase in the number of shoppers who visit retail stores, there is a corresponding increase in incidents of identity theft and fraud. It seems that it is connected with the use of credit cards, checks and identification documents. Shoppers have been warned to be extra careful when using these personal information-containing cards and documents. Thieves are out there waiting for the right opportunity to steal personal information or to commit fraud. The holiday season encourages them to heighten their operations because shoppers seem to be more energized than observant.

In the United States, at least two regions have reported a large increase in identity crimes, most of which are data breaches. The cost of information that is stolen from companies costs more than $150 billion in the national picture. This was reported by LifeLock Consumer Education that spanned the years from 2005 to 2010. The theory is that this is a result of technology that criminals take advantage of, plus human error on the part of consumers.

Internet privacy protection efforts are being improved by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and this time it will be brought to a new level. Without stifling innovation on the internet, consumers can receive more protection. The set of proposals by the FTC includes innovative functions such as “do not track” and several others.

For a long time, consumers’ online activities have been tracked by the use of “cookies”. Websites send cookies to the consumer’s computer, and this makes it easy for data miners to easily discover their choices of online activities. With enough information gathered, companies can target specific products and services to online consumers. It is difficult for consumers to protect themselves because most of them do not know how to turn off cookies. They need to make an extra effort in finding out the browser’s privacy settings so that they can opt out of cookies. Now, this one is not easy even for the experienced user.

It is true that some consumers might benefit from data mining. This is especially true for those who make online purchases because discounts and other offers may be available if they wish to buy the same item again. However, most consumers find targeted advertisements annoying and threatening to their privacy. That is why authorities are continually finding ways to protect consumers from these kinds of unsolicited ads.

The development of internet technology has helped businesses a lot. Business executives have widely used the internet in their companies. They now have more options available to them when it comes to communicating with clients and, they can complete their financial transactions anytime and anywhere. They can do online banking so they no longer have to make frequent trips to the bank. They can choose to use teleconferencing so now, there are less face-to-face meetings.

The earlier technology versions of online transactions were mostly done using desktop computers. Later, laptops and notebooks became more accessible and transactions were made even easier. Companies can easily keep track of their financial records from almost everywhere. Today, the use of smart phones is slowly becoming more popular among businessmen. In the past, these gadgets were largely used in social networking, more particularly Facebook and Twitter.

A new survey showed that more and more people are using their smart phones to transmit personal and financial information. The purposes of uploading these pieces of information are mostly for online banking, shopping or social networking. Among users, about 17% use their smart phones for money matters. This fact has attracted the interest of online criminals to take advantage of making money at the expense of companies.

Critics said that doing online transactions with the use of a mobile device is both fun and time saving. Clearly, criminals are also on their toes, ready for every chance to see how they can benefit out of the situation. That is why businessmen should not be overly confident, but should remain cautious. There is a new technique used by online criminals that is concealed under the guise of “the good stuff”.

The ongoing increase in the demand for smart phones and mobile and web applications has given online criminals the “go” signal. They have seen the benefits of using malicious software (or malware) in order to get into users’ accounts. Hiding behind online application stores, these criminals would lure smart phone users to download rouge apps. Without noticing it, the user also downloads a program that would allow the swindler to take control of his phone. With the rouge apps, criminals would eventually gain access to all personal and payment data of the phone owner.

Smart phone users have to take full control when deciding to use their device for accessing the web. Furthermore, they should be careful about applications they are going to download. They should learn lessons from those previous victims who suffered unauthorized charges against their accounts. Some were made to pay for premium calls that they did not make. As smart phone users, you are expected to be smarter than the online criminals, right?

One “desperate” woman from New Jersey committed another not-so-unusual case of identity theft just to get even with her ex-boyfriend. Her “ingenuity”, a case of impersonation, has nearly succeeded in ruining another person’s image online. She was able to create a fake Facebook page using her ex-boyfriend’s name, photo and some personal information. After creating the page, she then posted inflammatory comments. While a judge ruled that she can be accused of identity theft, legislators have to think further about the case’s wider implications for cyber speech.

The woman took the identity of her ex-boyfriend, who works as a police narcotics officer. The posts that were mostly self-destructive appeared to be made by him. There was one comment that talked about his being “high all the time”. Others mentioned his disreputable activities like frequenting prostitutes and escort services, and that he had herpes.

Impersonation, however it is done, is aimed at obtaining a benefit for one’s own self or to injure or defraud another. Way back in 2006, the issues of online impersonation and cyber bullying came out and quickly spread. It all started with the suicide of a 13-year-old girl who became a target online by a fictitious 13-year old boy. The case concluded with the “boy” being identified actually as the mother of another teenage girl.

Heated comments on a recent online newspaper editorial page regarding anonymity have drawn attention. The article asserted that in these times, the online anonymity of people should be limited. The writer argued that the internet is already polluted with too many anonymous comments. There are now suggestions that newspapers should entirely ban these types of comments. This is because these have only contributed to the mass of online garbage that is mostly full of false accusations and name-calling attacks.

Reacting to the foregoing statement, one critic reacted by saying that this kind of argument is not only wrong, but also dangerous. He admitted that in many ways, anonymity protects different groups of the population. He added that anonymity is also prone to abuses by some, particularly those who are spreading “vitriolic bile” without limits. Granting that this is true, it is not enough reason to entirely ban online anonymity. Recent surveys reveal that many online newspapers have established policies regarding this issue, while others have entirely banned this freedom.

Those who propose its banning rationalize that everyone should maintain online civility. While all newspapers should try to work on this issue, there is more to being identified online than just by one’s name. Those who work against anonymity said that identification will minimize online problems. However, this will discourage a lot of people from speaking their minds for the fear of retribution. They also pointed out that history has a lot to tell of anonymous men and women whose writings made great contributions to society.

I’d like to offer a “review” of sorts of my experience with Private Proxy – a software services company that provides anonymous server proxy protection.  First a bit of background.  I’m what you might call a “retail” user of the internet – I don’t have a web site of my own, I don’t try to create traffic on someone else’s website by “hitting” it many times, etc., my wife and I simply “use” the internet for email, surfing, banking, communication with family through Facebook, Google, etc.  We have 4 computers in the house (they accumulate over time like dust bunnies) and we both use the internet often through the day and often at the same time.

Over the past month or so there have been a series of articles in the Wall Street Journal, that frankly, scared the bejeezus out of us.  We knew that surfing the internet exposes us to identity theft and that third parties of all kinds can, do, and are probably in some cases legally required (like our ISP) to monitor all our online activities.  Now we believe our internet use is a private matter (doesn’t everyone?).  And we don’t feel that by tracking our internet preferences third parties can “better” market us through more targeted advertising to create a “better” internet experience for us.  Call us old fashioned but we would rather make those choices for ourselves – privately.  The WSJ articles made clear that ANY internet usage by an individual can both expose that user to invasions of privacy and outright dangerous – like going to a gun fight with only a knife.  All this got us thinking about ways to protect ourselves.

In any culture, bad people are always involved. Whenever some other person has a large amount of money or has an excellent life along with their excellent job, some other person who puts no effort into life finds them and robs them of it. The epitome of the old school thieves is the good old “hold you at gunpoint” breed. These low lifes might lurk in some gloomy alleyway for all of your cash and jewels, and then leave you poor or dead. This is the most memorable view of the old-style crook.

This type of criminal would have a starring role in an old gangster movie, the ones so overplayed they would be in a stark non-color and grainy version. As with their movie persona, these bad guys committed some atrocities. The film portrayals simply scared the viewers, but real street crooks are the ones to be held accountable for almost of the fright and damage to people. These bad people are the ones who make the cities unsafe at night, and are bait for most news reports adding to the hysteria.

These men and women were the most evil of the bad in their era. They were the outcasts of society, the ones that, when friends and families saw them in court, would avert their gaze, as if their gaze had some strange and hypnotic power. These were the reasons that the United States treads lightly with its prison system. It is a strange thing that such an accepting society conjures: you have these boundless rights and freedoms, yet it is just assumed that you will not abuse them. Unfortunately, while most of us take care of these rights, guys like these don’t and it tears at the very foundation of our country.

Do you remember a time, long ago in our past, when one had to go out to buy something and bring it home? It seems like a crazy concept, but it really happened. People drove their cars to a sort of vending center, where they exchanged monetary units for perishables and other items. They would then buy enough to last them for some time, and when they needed more, they would head back again and again. Someday kids will read about this very outdated practice in their history textbooks. All joking aside though, the idea that one would actually go out to a store to buy something is becoming obsolete. These stores have fewer users than they did fifty years ago, even with a larger population. The world of explosive technology has penetrated nearly every aspect of life, and shopping certainly under that umbrella.

People’s lives around the globe|world] today, especially those of the United States citizens, are of a highly mobile type. We use our cars to go anywhere, work a whole bunch of separate shifts to augment our bank accounts, and have more entertainment in our house than does a whole circus. Consider going out to the movies in the present day; in the prehistoric days, before the VCR player, you would have to buy a ticket for the theater playing at your time. Now you can simply download movies temporarily whenever you choose by taking your pick from an on-demand service. Our homes these days are like the best place to relax and have fun; it almost defeats the point of going out. This self-containment is a must today though because we have more going on in our lives than ever before.

With all the advantages the Internet has brought comes a new kind of crime. Internet crime is at an all time high. Thieves have learned that this is an easier way of robbing their victims than ever before. All they have to do is gain access to a person’s connection to the Internet and it is possible to take their identity or their money. This is being committed even as you are reading this article. Accessing someone’s bank account, credit cards and other personal information through the World Wide Web is the way a thief can get by with his crime with the least likelihood of getting caught. Gone are the days when going on the Internet was not threatened by the possibility of malware and spy ware. When a thief gains access to your Internet connection, all the information you are sending on that connection is out in the open for the taking. Bank account numbers, credit card numbers – all manner of personal information – is no longer safe. How do you take steps to keep this from happening? One of the best ways is to have an anonymous proxy server. This is one solution to keep thieves from gaining knowledge about your connection to the Internet and in turn keeping your information safe.

What is an anonymous proxy, you may be asking? First of all, there are two types of anonymous proxies. The one that most people use is the web-based. This is because it is simple to find. All that is required is a search on the Google site for “anonymous proxy” and a vast amount of results will be shown. Choose one of the results and go to the site. An empty URL box will be shown and you need only type the web address of the place you want to visit. The anonymous proxy will then take you to this address without showing your IP address. When you leave the website there will not be a record of your having been there. The anonymous proxy acts as a combination protection and retrieval tool. It gets the website for you and keeps anyone from accessing your IP address. Your IP address can tell a thief where you are located. How many people do you want to know your name?