Electronic Crime: Online Predators on Facebook

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Table of Contents

Introduction
On-line predators using Facebook and how they operate
Phishing
Spammers and stalkers
Facebook and reputation
Hacking
Burglary and other crimes
Usergroups
Conclusion
Reference List

Introduction

Computer crime has increased in the recent past due to the high rate of technological advancement that is happening globally. The term ‘computer crime’ is used to refer to all crimes that are done using a computer. The crimes done using a network also fall under the category of computer crimes. These crimes are sometimes referred to as cybercrimes.

The use of social media has increased, with many people opening accounts with various social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and Myspace. Some people even consider it a necessity because of the way it has eased communication for business people, students and any other person interested in meeting people. Most of these people are strangers to one another and this is where the danger of computer crime arises. People are devising new ways of committing cybercrimes each day and by using social networks such as Facebook, there are people who are opening numerous accounts with a fake profiles. Facebook, as one of the many social network sites, shall be addressed in this paper and after looking at the dangers that such sites pose to the contemporary world, a conclusion shall be arrived at that the world would be a safer place without such sites.

On-line predators using Facebook and how they operate

Computer crimes occur when a particular computer is used to commit a crime. They may also occur when a computer is targeted by people who want to commit a crime. These crimes are committed by people who are well versed with the computer and the internet systems and are thus sophisticated in nature. The crimes, therefore pose a major threat to the security of a given nation, where the crimes are being executed (Akers, 1998). There has been a public outcry concerning the increase of these crimes. The crimes are numerous and involve different activities. Some of the crimes that have been of public interest include those involving child pornography and the loss or access of confidential information by third parties who were not supposed to know the information.

Concerns about possible dangers posed by the use of Facebook had been non-existent, until recently when it was discovered that these social networking sites were a major threat to the safety of the people. Facebook has lately become one of the most dangerous sites for children and young adults who expose personal information in their profiles. This is because; they have been the target for online predators. These predators target young adults and children who use social sites such as Facebook because they are naïve and hence an easy target. Exposing too much personal information by the young people and especially the teenage girls has resulted in abduction, rape, and other forms of harassment for these girls (Richards, 2007). Online predators are becoming increasingly clever and are devising new and sophisticated ways of getting their target victims. Most of the time, they pose as friendly people who cannot harm these young girls and once they gain the confidence of the young, innocent teenage girls, they end up harming them through acts such as physical harassment, rape, abduction and other inhuman ways that are used by molesters (Steinberg & Morris, 2001, and Taylor & Quayle, 2003). Cases of young people being lured into sexual assaults are very common and are increasing because it seems that either the young people are not learning about the dangers of exposing too much information on their profiles in social networks sites or the predators are using advanced ways to get their victims (Bala and Goyal, 2000). Since the predators are known to use the information given out by their victims voluntarily on their profiles, it is believed that if divulging of such information was controlled, then cases of children becoming victims of child predators would be reduced and eventually eradicated.

To physically meet with their victims, on-line predators use various means that their victims cannot be suspicious of (Jenkins, 2001). Some give out misleading information about their age and their motives in meeting the victims. After they established that their victims have enough confidence in them, they initiate a meeting, where they abduct these victims. The predators at times also decide to stalk their victims and abduct them.

According to Sarnecki (2001), the notion held by many people that on-line predators use force, violence or trickery to lure their young victims into sexual encounters is a wrong one. This is because, these predators, who are mostly older men, use social networks such as Facebook to meet and interact with their victims. The underage teenagers are then seduced into acts of sex which they give in to. This happens after the predators keeps in touch with the victims for quite some time through chats, messages and emails. This makes them develop an intimate relationship, where the victims do not doubt the intention of the predator.

Due to the increased number of child and teenage sexual molestation cases, there is need to address the situation by all stakeholders (Reiss and Farrington, 1991). This is because there is heightened fear among various groups such as the parents and guardians of children concerning the safety of their children. Some of the people who are better placed to address this issue are the psychologists, who deal with such cases frequently (Thornberry, Krohn, Lizotte, Smith and Tobin, 2003). The clients of the psychologists may be both the perpetrators of these crimes or their victims.

Prior to the establishment of such sites, cases of online predators targeting underage children were unheard of. This means that Facebook and other social sites have significantly contributed to the rise of child molestation crimes by these predators. The internet has therefore posed a great danger to the children and the teenagers in the contemporary would. Despite numerous warnings from different quarters about engaging in intimate relationships with strangers, adolescents seem not to heed to the advice and many fall victims to the predators (Matsueda and Anderson, 1998). This could be because of the curious nature but the danger that these adolescents face is great. It is therefore correct to conclude that without Facebook, children and teenagers would live in a safer world, but so long as they are accessing these social sites, they remain unsafe.

Phishing

Walden (2007) notes that phishing has also become common for users of Facebook. Phishing can be described as a means through which a person tries to access another person’s confidential information. Such information includes passwords and information about someone’s credit cards. The person who is involved in the act of phishing often pretends to be a genuine person. Many unsuspecting people have been victims of such acts and have ended up divulging confidential information, which has brought them a lot of problems later on when they discover that the recipients of the information did not have good intentions. People should be ware of these people, who normally use electronic communication and pose as credible people while targeting their victims. The term ‘phishing’ has its origin in the common word ‘fishing’, which implies catching the unsuspecting victim using bait, just like the fisherman would do with a fish. The perpetrators of phishing activities are intelligent people who purport to belong to web sites that have a good reputation, information technology administration firms and auction firms, among many others (Walden, 2007). The most common means of carrying out acts of phishing is through email spoofing. The use of instant messaging is also common.

Email spoofing is the act of interfering and altering some components of the email in order to give the receiver an impression that the mail originated from a different source (Bramoull´e and Kranton, 2003.). This is intended to make the receiver trust the persons sending the email and disclose to them certain sensitive information that they may require such as usernames and passwords, in order to go ahead and commit crimes. Often, the details provided in these emails are inaccurate and the web sites given usually lead the receivers of such mails to non-existent websites. The website are however, made to look like the genuine websites for companies that the perpetrators purport to belong to. Phishing is one of the many social engineering technologies that have been created to lie to unsuspecting public and rob them of their valuables. Acts of phishing are also rampant because of inability of the public to effectively use the existing technologies that deal with web security. Numerous attempts have been made to try and curb the spread of this vice. They include: formulation of laws to address the issue, creating awareness to the public and the use of technological safety measures that can address this problem. The common baits used by the perpetrators of phishing are fake websites, links and attachments. Once the recipient of the emails click on either of these, they may be at risk of having their sensitive information disclosed to the strangers (Yar, 2006).

Phishing activities are currently very rampant in social networking sites. Such activities have a higher success rate when done within the social network sites than in any other place. This is a reason why users of Facebook should be cautious so that they do not fall prey to this crime.

The existence of this vice is a major threat to individuals and companies, which are impersonated by those involved in phishing. One is therefore not very sure of the safety of their passwords and other sensitive information such as credit card information, when there are people who are going on with these heinous acts. Educating people to identify when someone is attempting to carry out phishing has been suggested as one of the ways of curbing the spread of this illegal activity. Another way of fighting this vice would be for those who use the internet to be more cautious when responding to emails from people claiming to belong to certain reputable organizations. It is wiser to contact such organizations using their addresses that one is aware of instead of using the links and email addresses provided by the email one has received.

Spammers and stalkers

Facebook as a social network site has particularly made it easy for stalkers and spammers to access one’s personal details. Revealing too much concerning one’s interests, current occupation, place of residence and what one is doing at a certain time may work against such a person because such information may end up in the hands of a person with an evil motive. The end results of such too much revelation of personal information may be increase in spam. Stalking, which is a dangerous activity can also be a consequence. It is important to remember that not everyone using Facebook is doing so with noble intentions.

Moore (2005) observes that some people use the social sites to target people for their criminal activities. Criminals are particularly drawn too these sites because of the availability of a lot of personal information that may be useful to the criminals.

Horst and Scheinkman (2003) state that; it is very common for criminals or people with malicious motives to impersonate other people in order to achieve certain goals. Because of availability of personal information about one’s birthday, interests, likes, dislikes and daily routine, among others, malicious people may be able to impersonate a friend that one trusts. They may also do this in order to convince the friend that they are able to access confidential information very easily. Availability of such information on Facebook can also be helpful in guessing the possible password of important documents. This is the reason why it is not advisable for one to use obvious names such as those of someone’s pets or favorite musicians as their passwords. The danger of spammers and stalkers guessing the passwords right are very real incase such are used. Spammers and stalkers are also aware of the fact that almost every document requires one to have a password. Due to the challenge of having to memorize all the passwords, most people prefer to use one password for everything that requires them to haves a password (Walden, 2007).

The criminals are therefore motivated by the fact that, once they have access to one of a person’s password, they could as well have access to all their documents. Stalkers and spammers also rely so much on the information posted on daily basis by the people they are stalking. Knowledge of one’s daily routines and also where and what they are doing is very vital in the execution of crime by these people. It is therefore wise for people who use Facebook to try and limit as much as possible the information they divulge to the public because they may not be aware who is reading (Wall, 2007). Caution should be taken despite what many people think as security to the information they give out because it can only be accessed by one’s friends. It is not uncommon for such friends to have the spammers and stalkers as their friend and so they are able to access other people’s profiles through such people. Consequently, it is vital for one to sieve through what they post on their Facebook accounts because there are dire consequences on anything that one does which may attract spammers and stalkers. Walden (2007) recommends limiting of information that one gives out through social networks as a way of keeping off stalkers and spammers. Information about one’s physical address, email address and phone number should never be included in one’s profile. Being silent on one’s whereabouts and the daily routine is an effective way of keeping off stalkers.

Information should be treated as a powerful tool that can be used against a person once it is in the hands of malicious people (Berliner, 2002.). It is also vital for one to remember that once any information that was not supposed to be known by all people has been divulged, it is almost impossible to retract it. Even if one deletes it immediately, there is still a possibility that someone else has seen it and probably even saved it. Facebook should therefore be used only for sharing information that is only helpful to the person but not any other that may be detrimental to the person. With this in mind, one may be able to continue using their Facebook account in a relatively safer environment and enjoy the benefits of be in touch with friends and family members.

Facebook and reputation

The misuse of Facebook has contributed significantly to the damage of some people’s reputations. The damage of the reputation can be caused by either the persons using this social site themselves or by others who are out to malign them.

One can destroy their own reputation by not being careful concerning what they are posting. Incidents of people posting photographs or information that should not have seen by the public are common to many Facebook users. The greatest danger in doing this is that the information remains with the people long after one has logged out of the accounts. This means that even if one realizes and decides to delete, such information is still available to the people. Such material can easily be duplicated and distributed to many other people within a short time and this may result to damage of one’s reputation.

According to Calv´o-Armengol and Jackson (2003) and Topa (2001), such an occurrence is especially harmful if a potential or current employer knows it and may lead to loss of a job or not being offered one. Damage of one’s character also has severe psychological implications on a person especially if the information in the public domain was divulged accidentally.

Other people can also use the information available to them by viewing one’s profile. They can then use the information of photographs to post nasty things about the person, which may bring the person a bad reputation. Users of Facebook should try as much as possible not to reveal too much, as many do in an attempt to impress their friends, because this can work against them in the long run.

Hacking

For a long time, virus writers and other malware magicians did not give much attention to social networking sites such as Facebook. According to Ophardt (2010), this is not the case today because these sites have also been targeted by these people. The Koobface Virus, an anagram of ‘Facebook’, is the virus that has been targeted to Facebook and its users. Social networking sites have specifically been targeted because of the way they are designed to be user friendly. It is true that one does not need a lot of knowledge about information technology and computers for one to be able to operate a Facebook account. Things have been made easier by introduction of mobile phones that enable users to access their Facebook accounts. This means that access to one’s account is not only cheaper and easier but also very convenient (Yar, 2006).

As a result, a lot of people, regardless of their age, social status and education level have been able to open and operate a Facebook account. Although this has worked as an advantage for the social sites and the people who enjoy these services, it has also come with a major safety threat (Moretti, 2007). Some of the users of Facebook do not understand about computer viruses and therefore end up getting themselves into activities that may lead to their computers or mobile phones being infected with them. This happens mostly when users are led to a URL that they are supposed to click, which is mostly about a video clip that is meant to impress them. In clicking such URLs, the users subject their electronic devices they are using to these viruses. The writers of such viruses capitalize on the idea that Facebook users are more likely to respond to such promptings of following a certain link that will provide them with certain information. The response is especially fast if the link seems to have originated from a friend or someone they know. This aids in faster spread of the virus.

According to Moretti (2007), this is particularly dangerous to businesses and companies that risk losing vital information or having the information accessed by unscrupulous people. Safety measures should be taken to ensure that confidential information belonging to individuals or companies is safeguarded. Since it is not safe to assume that everyone in an organization understands the concept of a computer virus, it is important for the people to be taught about it and also on security issues relating to the use of internet (McQuade, 2006). Since the dangers of closing down a business are so real in case of a virus infection to the company’s vital documents, extra care should be taken when allowing employees to access Facebook using the company’s computers. It may even be necessary for the companies and other businesses to block all social network sites, for their own security because there are people who may never learn even when they are taught on the dangers of having a virus get into the companies systems. Such people may go ahead and open links they are warned of or engage in Facebook activities that may endanger the security of the organization. Because of the dangers posed by hackers and scammers, the public needs to be more careful to minimize on the number of attacks, and especially because the methods used are becoming more advanced and sophisticated (Lessig, 1999). An up-to-date virus can also help in protecting one’s personal computer against an attack by the Koobface virus.

Burglary and other crimes

Burglars and other criminals can target a person because of the information they have disclosed on their profile or have posted concerning their whereabouts at a particular time. It is not uncommon for burglars to break into houses, whose occupants had updated that they would be going for a trip for some days. Armed with such information, burglars are able to know when to break in and how successful they are going to be. On the contrary, this may have worked to impress the friends of the people going for the trip, but has worked against them. Cases of burglary and other related crimes can reduce significantly if simple remedies such as not giving information about intended trips are not given away (Sah, 1991). Also, bragging about one’s huge accomplishments in life, finances or expensive personal assets that one has acquired can be risky because it can attract the attention of thugs. Caution should be exercised when posting texts containing information about one’s wealth or financial status. According to Glaeser, Sacerdote, and Scheinkman, (1996), people should be aware that burglars and other criminals are also upgrading their means of operation and how the gather information and should shun doing anything that can help such people carry out their plans.

Usergroups

Once a person has opened a Facebook account, it is very common for them to receive a lot of invitations from various groups to join them. Most of these groups seem very genuine, with some even having lucrative offers such as helping in marketing one’s enterprise or helping in making more money. With such enticing promises, many people end up joining groups that have hidden agendas. This may lead to loss of property, money or other valuables to such fraudulent groups (Goyal, 2003). It is therefore advisable for people to be very careful before joining any groups on Facebook.

Another problem that arises once one joins some groups is the danger of attack by a virus that may lead to loss of vital information. This happens when one is given a link that they are supposed to log in for them to access certain vital information. The links turn out to be a real threat to anyone who accesses them. Worse still, one’s business may collapse due to such attacks. Jackson and Wolinsky (1996) note that it is necessary for people to be careful and shun any desire to make more money through groups that purport to help people do so through Facebook. Caution should also be taken when such groups require one to give confidential information about one’s business. The existence of these groups is a threat to the security of businesses and individuals, especially the young people who join some groups blindly (Mitrano, 2006).

Conclusion

The discussion in this paper has clearly demonstrated the threats that Facebook has posed to the contemporary world. These threats would not be there if Facebook, as a social networking site was not present. Facebook, together with other social networking sites are viewed as great avenues to connect with old friends and also meet new ones. Nevertheless, the same sites are a fertile ground for malicious activity to be cultivated. Child pornography, hacking, damage of reputation, impersonation and stalking are a few of the vices that are carried out using Facebook and other social networking sites. Since the danger that is posed by the use of Facebook is great, caution should be taken to avoid occurrence of incident related with Facebook usage. According to Lanning (2001), children should never be allowed to use the internet without an adult’s supervision. This is meant to reduce cases of child pornography and sexual abuse (Warr, 2002). Those who have Facebook accounts should avoid giving out too much information tat may attract spammers and stalkers. There is also need for business organizations to educate their employees about the dangers that are posed by viruses once they infect the company’s systems. Alternatively, companies may choose to block access to Facebook and other sites using the company’s facilities. Facebook can also be used as a means of reducing burglary cases because at times, burglars rely on the information they get on Facebook about people’s whereabouts. Exercising caution before one joins a user group on Facebook can also help in increasing safe use of Facebook.

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