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Crime & Safety

Beaumaster: June is Internet Safety Month

Rice County Attorney Paul Beaumaster encourages county residents to report suspected cybercrime.

Editor's Note: The following article was written by Rice County Attorney Paul Beaumaster.

Rice County citizens regularly call my office, fearing they have been the victim of a financial crime or identity theft on the Internet. These callers are typically referred to their local Police Department, the Rice County Sheriff’s Department, and the state and national organizations I’m discussing today.

Locally, law enforcement officers will complete a report of the crime, decide how to best investigate the matter, and send a report of the crime to the Minnesota Financial Crimes Task Force (MNFCTF.) The MNFCTF is a task force comprised of local, state and federal agencies – led by the MN Bureau of Criminal Apprehension – that investigates financial crimes related to identity theft. (This Minnesota task force has received international awards for their investigations into massive identity theft and fraud rings.)

With identity theft becoming more and more sophisticated, local and state police and prosecutorial offices often reach out to the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C.) The NW3C is a non-profit organization offering a national support system for the “prevention, investigation and prosecution of economic and high-tech crime.” The NW3C offers services such as training and investigative support to law enforcement as well as research for policy makers. (Rice County is a member of the NW3C organization.)

The NW3C, along with the FBI, operates the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3.) The IC3 is a resource for law enforcement and victims. The IC3 allows local law enforcement agencies to share information and pursue cases that cross jurisdictional boundaries. And for victims, the IC3 provides an accessible reporting mechanism that alerts authorities to suspected criminal violations. Basically, the IC3 compiles the complaints it receives into an extensive database, analyzes and collates the complaints, and then alerts appropriate law enforcement agencies of crimes and trends.

Making a report of suspected Internet crimes to the IC3 is as easy as entering a complaint online at www.ic3.gov. In 2012, the IC3 received 289,874 consumer complaints with an adjusted dollar loss of $525,441, 110.00. This was an 8.3% increase in reported losses since 2011. In recognition of this increase, the IC3 and my office have expanded efforts to inform the general public about online scams through public service announcements and providing additional safety tips for Internet consumers. In 2013, the IC3 continues its mission to serve both the online public and law enforcement agencies. The work and success of the IC3 depends upon victims reporting their complaints.

Thankfully, many Rice County cybercrime victims do not fall prey to the criminal’s cyber schemes; they shrug off the ridiculous e-mail claiming they won the Irish sweep stakes; they ignore the claim that a long lost relative has left them millions if only they provide a bank account number for the inheritance to be deposited. When a victim doesn’t actually suffer the intended loss, that victim often fails to make any sort of report of the cybercrime. I encourage you to take the time to report the crime nonetheless. Stopping cybercrime, like all crime, depends on reporting.

If you had been held up at gunpoint, but had nothing for the bandit to steal, wouldn’t you still report the dangerous bandit to the appropriate authorities? In the same vein, I encourage everyone who receives a suspicious solicitation to report his or her complaint to the IC3 – whether or not an actual dollar loss occurred. Although the IC3 may not be able to immediately refer a case to a law enforcement agency, their findings and trends are posted online to inform the public. Please report all cybercrime regardless of loss. The IC3, NW3C, as well as my office and local law enforcement, can use this data to prevent, investigate and prosecute Internet crimes.

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