NCJ Number
118215
Date Published
1988
Length
129 pages
Annotation
This report examines special police units established by local jurisdictions to investigate computer crime cases.
Abstract
The report opens with an overview of computer crime, including estimates of the increases in computer crimes and examples of such crime. A description of computer crime units encompasses backgrounds, training, responsibilities, and caseloads. Procedures for establishing a full-time unit are explained. Detailed descriptions of 11 actual cases from the files of the investigative units reflect the wide range of possible computer crimes and the investigative techniques required to solve them. An overview of State statutes on computer crimes provides a history of key computer crime cases, definitions of terms typically found in the statutes, and the legal language of specific offenses. The concluding chapter discusses the future of computer crimes and the need for more local agencies to address the problem. Appended description of a "sting" operation for identifying illegal computer bulletin boards, two State computer crime statutes, example of a search warrant for computer hardware and software, and a discovery motion from a defendant in a computer crime case.