| The internet has gone a long way to increasing | | | | online dating sites, all of which have proven effective |
| opportunities for people with disabilities. Today, one | | | | as criminal devices in the hands of fraudsters. |
| does not even need to leave the home to purchase a | | | | Who is WC3? |
| television, furniture or even a wheelchair. Websites like | | | | The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a |
| eBay, Craigslist and Amazon have made it extremely | | | | partnership between the Federal Bureau of |
| easy for anyone to make a purchase over the | | | | Investigation (FBI), the National White Collar Crime |
| internet. So easy in fact that many individuals do not | | | | Center (NW3C), and the Bureau of Justice Assistance |
| consider the possibility of a fraudulent transaction. | | | | (BJA). |
| However, it does happen. According to the Internet | | | | IC3's mission is to serve as a vehicle to receive, |
| Crime Complaint Center (IC3), it received 206,884 | | | | develop, and refer criminal complaints regarding the |
| complaint submissions for the year 2007. Just slightly | | | | rapidly expanding arena of cyber crime. The IC3 gives |
| lower (by 0.3%) than the year before, which was | | | | the victims of cyber crime a convenient and |
| 207,492. | | | | easy-to-use reporting mechanism that alerts authorities |
| IC3 reports that 90,008 complaints of crime to federal, | | | | of suspected criminal or civil violations. For law |
| state, and local law enforcement agencies around the | | | | enforcement and regulatory agencies at the federal, |
| country for further consideration. The majority of | | | | state, local and international level, IC3 provides a central |
| cases referred alleged fraud and involved a financial | | | | referral mechanism for complaints involving Internet |
| loss on the part of the person making the complaint. | | | | related crimes |
| The total dollar amount lost from these cases was | | | | How do I file a complaint? |
| $239.09 million with a median dollar loss of $680.00 per | | | | IC3 accepts online Internet crime complaints from |
| complaint. This was an increase from $198.44 million in | | | | either the person who believes they were defrauded |
| total reported losses in 2006. Therefore, although the | | | | or from a third party to the complainant. We can best |
| number of cases reported went down slightly, the | | | | process your complaint if we receive accurate and |
| actual cost to the person who suffers a lost went up. | | | | complete information from you. Therefore, we request |
| The WC3 Statistical Breakdown | | | | that you provide the following information when filing a |
| Perpetrators were predominantly male (75.8%) and | | | | complaint: |
| half resided in one of the following states: California, | | | | - Your name |
| Florida, New York, Texas, Illinois, Pennsylvania and | | | | - Your mailing address |
| Georgia. The majority of reported perpetrators were | | | | - Your telephone number |
| from the United States. However, a significant number | | | | - The name, address, telephone number, and Web |
| of perpetrators also were located in United Kingdom, | | | | address, if available, of the individual or organization you |
| Nigeria, Canada, Romania, and Italy. | | | | believe defrauded you. |
| Among complainants, 57.6% were male, nearly half | | | | Specific details on how, why, and when you believe |
| were between the ages of 30 and 50 and one-third | | | | you were defrauded. Any other relevant information |
| resided in one of the four most populated states: | | | | you believe is necessary to support your complaint. |
| California, Florida, Texas, and New York. While most | | | | File a Complaint at |
| were from the United States, IC3 received a number | | | | Note The Following: |
| of complaints from Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, | | | | Because IC3 is a partnership the proccesed |
| India, and Mexico. | | | | complaints are forwarded to Federal, State, Local and |
| Males complainants lost more money than females | | | | International law enforcement agencies for action. |
| (ratio of $1.67 to every $1.00 lost per female). This may | | | | It is at the discretion of receiving agency as to |
| be a function of both online purchasing differences by | | | | what type of action to take. |
| gender and the type of fraudulent schemes by which | | | | Filing a complaint with IC3 does not mean that your |
| the individuals were victimized. | | | | credit card companies or banks have been notified of |
| Electronic mail (e-mail) (73.6%) and web pages (32.7%) | | | | fradulent charges. It is your responsibility to notify your |
| were the two primary mechanisms by which the | | | | credit card company or bank directly. |
| fraudulent contact took place. | | | | IC3 does not guarantee that information submitted |
| The Agency claims that recent high activity scams in | | | | to authorities on your behalf will remain confidential. |
| 2007 were those involving pets, checks, spam, and | | | | The state that it depends on the State or Local laws. |