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.

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.

The lawyer of the New Jersey woman nearly succeeded in his attempt to have the case dismissed. The attorney said that electronic communications is not mentioned in the New Jersey law. This prompted the New Jersey legislature to look into the law and to make such needed amendments. The lawyer continued by saying that the move to make revisions on the current law is an admission that his client’s action is not covered by it.

The case at hand may or may not amount to something, but what is clear at present is that identity theft can really be destructive. Just this simple case of faking a Facebook page can ruin one’s reputation and character. There seems to be no effective way of checking with 100% accuracy the identity of a user. There is a possibility that any user could just be pretending to be someone else.

MyYearbook is a relatively new social networking site that is now gaining wide popularity among teens. This site was created for teens ages 13 and up who want to meet new friends online. Its creators were two high school students, brother and sister David and Catherine Cook, and started in 2005. The two asked the help of their older brother, Geoff to help them with their project. This site was finally launched at Montgomery High School, which was the school they attended.

But there is now an indication that the site is being abused by some users. A parent reported how his 12-year old daughter, who uses the site, was endangered. She was receiving messages from older men that contained vulgar language. This caused him to suspect that the site is being used by some older men who are looking for sex. According to the parent, older men can fake their ages the same way and just as easily as younger children can just so that they can register on the site.

This occurrence is not entirely different from what other social networking sites have experienced. More intense efforts have to be made so that the online safety of users is not compromised. A spokesperson for the company said that the online safety of its users is taken very seriously. A monitoring team is always working 24 hours a day, 7 days a week just to keep watch. The point that needs to be stressed is that parents should take an active role in defending their children against online predators.

It is good to know more advantages that can come from using an anonymous proxy, specifically to bypass filters. Aside from speed, it also blocks much of the spyware and junk that is sent to your computer. This saves you from the common problems that users come across. While this can be solved by using technical skill, it is very burdensome to encounter this problem repeatedly.

With an anonymous proxy, your personal information is better protected. From experience, once personal information is gathered by sites, it can be used for marketing purposes. You can be saved from a lot of trouble because with an anonymous proxy, websites can no longer have access to your personal information.

By policy, some corporations, institutions and schools use filters to block users from viewing certain sites. Using an anonymous proxy, this filter can be easily bypassed. This process has two essential steps. The anonymous proxy downloads the site onto its server. Then, the user can download the “blocked” site from the proxy server to his or her browser, thus getting around the “wall”.

Problems with slow-loading websites can be easily solved with an anonymous proxy. There are times when the problem is not in the web hosting company. Some users, especially those with some technical expertise, would even change their DNS server address but still can’t load the site faster. Then, the real problem is identified – the internet provider itself, due to bandwidth or network related problems. This is not a problem if you just use a proxy server.

The use of a proxy server is not yet well-known among many internet users. A lot of users have the wrong notion that it requires some special skills to successfully take advantage of its value. There is a need for users to learn more about it. People knowledgeable in the use of proxy servers can help educate by sharing their experiences about its benefits. Very soon, more people will know about its good uses and apply it to their advantage.

Social networking is one site where people could plainly give out their personal information. Facebook for instance has about 500 million users around the globe. This number of users has at least their basic private information open to practically anyone else online. All these data are in the custody of the networking business. These same data are what the government trying to defend in line with privacy laws.

As mentioned before, many internet users have become very careless in uploading information. With technology on the go, the government desires to put added control over data selling. Many government officials support the planned enhancement of privacy rights protection.

On the other hand, Facebook also has taken the test to redesign its strategies in the US. It has accepted the stand of the government leaning towards a stricter discharge of privacy laws. For this, the company has taken a stride ahead of the rest of its counterparts like Twitter, Zynga and LinkedIn.

Lobbying has become the most appropriate approach. Facebook has strategized to hire added employees who are specialists at public policies. Certainly, it is up to looking for some negotiation between the government’s project and the company’s objectives. To remember, government in particular wants to beef-up legislations to protect online users. These would include users’ identities, personal info, and online habits. In addition, policies will also be passed regarding the tracking, gathering and sale of any of this shared information.

There is an apparent hint that the government would launch “do not track” legislation. Senator Richard Blumenthal opts for policies that would oblige sites to obtain specific consent to track and sell data. The same stand is taken by Rep. Edward Markey, but centers more on protecting online activities and data collecting and profiling.

The brighter side of the matter is that both Facebook and government have the same viewpoint when comes to privacy protection. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg consents that people should be guaranteed of their privacy. Similarly, users have to be convinced that they have full control over the data that they submit. These are the same objectives as that of the planned legislation enhancements by the government.

More or less, there is likelihood that new regulatory actions would be implemented before long. This would be great news not only for Facebook but for other groups as well. If ever, these new policies would advantage both the users and companies. On one hand, users could continue to benefit from the fruits of technology. On the other, companies could make use of personal data but still keeping the privacy of millions of their clients.

This scared the citizens of that era, around the 1950’s. They grew up in a time where they did not question authority, and this meant the government. This surrender of their will to their government would have made it easy for them to be controlled. Since at about this time  technology was going places that mankind could never have foreseen, Orwell’s fictional world seemed more imminent than ever. Ever since America broke off from the British rulers those decades ago, we have always had a healthy skepticism for any sort of government power. Although the government is not all controlling, people still are prone to views of it taking over and of martial law. The biggest problem and fear people have though is with privacy, and to this extent the government is the least of their worries.

The government has the power to invade our privacy, no doubt about it. Would they really use it though? Probably not. Although 1984 is an excellent novel and recommended reading for anyone and everyone, its ideas did not come to fruition. We have long surpassed the year 1984 and our society, even today, is nothing like Orwell predicted. What he nailed head on though is our dependence on technology, and for this we have to applaud him. Orwell described great systems where people could interact, but it would cost the public most of their anonymity and privacy; sounds like the social networking giants of today? To this end, it is not the government that is going to strip us of all of our privacy, it is ourselves. Instead of the cameras being on every street corner, watching passerby, they are on our web cams, projecting our faces to friends all over the world.

Why did Orwell pronounce these social aspects as a bad thing then?  He saw the dangers of OTHER PEOPLE seeing everything about our lives. This certainly rings true today: think of all of the kidnappings and other crimes that have stemmed from an overly revealing online profile! Unlike the conscientious writer, people do not think of their audience when they put up all of the stuff they do on their personal sites. Many, to complete strangers, leak many sensitive details of their life, and get burned for it later. These sites are arguably the best way for a criminal to find out about you and find out where to strike you. Your Internet site can reveal ways to get into your life that you would never think to tell anyone.

This is due to a principle where humans cannot limit the output they have in non-face to face contact. Nearly everyone suffers from this deadly syndrome, and strangely, no one seems to notice. No one ever seems to think before they post the information they want on their site; no mental screening process occurs. Only the criminals realize, and before you know it, you have just told them your address, and that you won’t be home for the weekend. When you get back, your stash of cash and other valuables might be with a new owner. Although Orwell wasn’t completely accurate in his message, there is still something to be learned. Big Brother is always watching, and alongside him is a crafty hacker, watching, waiting, biding his time till the opportunity for a strike presents itself. Be mindful, don’t give Big Brother your information, and he won’t pass it too the criminal.

Anonymous Proxy to avoid identity theft

Although we did not know it the abstract concept of a grassroots link between users would be manifested to the tangible, yet paradoxically intangible, Internet. This system allowed people to set up their own sites via the WWW service, and brought about many great things. Unfortunately, it is through the Internet that we find ourselves the victims of some of the most creative criminals.

The creation of MySpace, FaceBook, and other social networking sites where people can communicate to one another through personalized profiles and comment, blog, and rate each others own pictures brought about a social revolution. People became addicted to these sites, and soon enough criminals began to notice and try and exploit the general public’s naivete regarding Internet safety. Through the wonderful power of deceit the Internet provides, these ingenious crooks posed as friends of some people, and lured them into the real world to steal, abduct, etc. The more sophisticated criminals even earned themselves a special title of reverence: a hacker. These hackers manipulated computer infrastructure and security systems to go right into people’s documents or bank accounts and take whatever they want.

Some criminals have learned the enigmatic arts of intercepting online conversations, and using the possibly embarrassing information as a blackmail tool, to get the person to pay up or their sensitive secret is spilled to everyone. The zenith of criminal achievement through the hacker is by far identity theft. These hackers, by accumulating certain identifying and personal pieces of information from a person, can actually exploit the power of the Internet to, online, become that person. Very useful if they wish to buy a variety of expensive items online but do not have the money to do so themselves.

What the public doesn’t know and the hackers wish to keep a secret is the anonymous proxy server. This private proxy will enable you to surf the Internet incognito, and have high bit encryption services cover all of your tracks,, so that some hacker cannot get into anything of yours. Surf anonymously online through an anonymous proxy and circumvent even the most creative criminal!

Use an anonymous proxy to stay safe overseas.

So what would a soldier want to access on the web. Believe it or not, one of the things they do is watch TV online. They can catch their favorite programs or watch hockey. Most of the TV networks put their some of their latest episodes online. For others, they can access media sites that aggregate content. Another source for media is the online newspapers like the New York Times. Or maybe they want to read their home town newspaper online. Today most, if not all papers, have an online version. So between TV, sports, and newspapers, they can catch up on the latest US media and news.

Instead of TV, they might be on social networking sites like FaceBook or MySpace. For those who have not served in the military, you can’t imagine how much of a gift these sites are to lonely young men and women far from home. With a click of the mouse, they can see friends and loved ones. They can catch up on the latest happenings in their families or circle of friends. They can see videos, pictures and general updates. And maybe, just maybe, some of the loneliness might go away. Sure, they are still at the front. Sure they are still in harm’s way. But they have a connection back to their normal every day lives. Unfortunately, they can’t always connect back to these US sites. You’d think the web is available everywhere.

The purpose of companies streaming their television shows onto the internet is so that people will see them, and eventually decide to buy them on DVD. People outside the country however will not be able to buy these because they are simply unavailable. Companies decided that they were actually losing money because such people couldn’t get a hold of their products! They didn’t seem to consider all of the people IN the United States that were buying. After all, what could it hurt if a few foreigners watched an episode of The Office, or even Stargate Universe? Well you wouldn’t think that it could hurt at all, but the production companies didn’t quite see it that way. For this reason they started to block IP addresses outside of the United States. The same went for several social networking websites because they suffered from the same advertisement problem. This however did not stop the military personnel from viewing their favorite websites. They instead turned to proxies.

For those who don’t know, a proxy is a server that one can connect to. This server will then connect you to the internet via it’s own connection. What does this accomplish? It provides you with a new IP address which is based in the United States. You are not visiting websites via your own connection, but instead you are using the ISP that the proxy subscribes to. What you’re dealing with there is surfing the internet using a computer across the ocean. The moral aspect is up to you, but if you get a proxy with decent encryption, the ISP you use overseas will never know the difference. This is also a great way to protect your privacy. By using a proxy you will be able to hide your identity while catching up on your favorite shows. The one thing you don’t want to do in a war zone is broadcast who you are and what you are doing. With that in mind, start shopping for a good proxy today. Once you arrange a good one, you will be able to sit back, relax, and enjoy your favorite shows.