In this study, the development of the computer related crime will be examined in the first chapter. After a detailed introduction to computer crimes, the most common types of the computer crimes will be examined and the characteristics of the offenders and their motivates will be identified. The general investigation process of the computer crime investigation will be outlined in the second chapter. After attempting to define computer crime, computer criminals and investigation process, a case study related to the topic will be examined and the characteristics and the motives of the criminals will be identified. In the last chapter the response by law enforcement officers to high technology crime will be discussed.

The U.S. government is responsible for protecting the country's energy and technology infrastructure. Critics argue the United States has failed to prepare, protect and respond to incidents involving the national electric grid leaving communities vulnerable to prolonged power outages. Protection of investor owned utilities' critical infrastructure is vulnerable to cyber and physical harm from the absence of criminalizing the intrusion of private sector computer networks, the lack of cybersecurity threats in emergency management, and the absence of cyber-intelligent leadership supports this argument. The purpose of this study was to introduce an electric grid protection theoretical concept, while identifying whether cybersecurity law and emergency management, amongst the investor-owned utility community, has an optimized relationship for protecting the national electric grid from harm. Easton's political system input/output model, Sommestad's cybersecurity theory, and Mitroff's crisis management theory provided the theoretical foundations for this study. The study utilized a mixed method research design that incorporated a Likert collection survey and combined quantitative chi-square and qualitative analysis. The key findings identified that cybersecurity law and the use of emergency management in the electric grid protection theory were not optimized to protect the national electric grid from harm. The recommendations of this study included the optimization of the theory elements through educational outreach and amending administrative cybersecurity law to improve the protection of the national electric grid and positively impacting social change by safeguarding the delivery of reliable electric energy to the millions of Americans who depend upon it.

M.Sc. (Computer Science) / The past couple of years have seen an explosion in the number of online fraud schemes – Total annual losses exceed tens of millions of Rands. Many people and organizations from all over the world have fallen victim to it. Nobody is safe; everybody is vulnerable. As we increasingly make use of the Internet and mobile technology to do our work and to perform chores such as online banking or shopping, we become even more vulnerable. Fraudsters make use of ever-more sophisticated techniques and clever schemes to target the unsuspecting end-users of mobile and Internet technology, and to trick them into surrendering their personal information so that electronic transactions can be carried out in their name. Examples include cheque and credit card fraud, phishing, identity theft and spyware, to name but a few. Services such as Internet- and cell phone banking especially, provide a haven of possibilities to make easy money because the technology is relatively new, and it is being used by evermore people who believe that it is fast, safe and secure and will therefore make their lives easier. One of the latest scams at the time of this writing is “SIM swap fraud”: Fraudsters target specific victims, perform SIM swaps on their cell phone numbers, and then proceed to empty the victims’ bank accounts. This is all done in a matter of minutes, so the victims only realize what has happened when it is too late to do anything about it. Needless to say, a solution must be found that will prevent unauthorized SIM swaps and strengthen online banking security. This dissertation does exactly that. It examines the digital world known as cyberspace, identifies how SIM swap fraudsters manage to defraud their targets, and presents a biometrics-based security system to combat SIM swap fraud.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Corporate mergers and partnerships are common in today’s competitive environment and inevitably require organisations to integrate information and telecommunication systems when such unisons take place. One of the most important challenges in each enterprise, especially forced by global markets and the resulting competition, is the capability to efficiently interact, collaborate and exchange information with business partners and within an organisation. Many software systems within organisations are not integrated into a homogeneous structure and therefore the sharing and exchange of information, not being synchronised, leads to possible misappropriation of such information. These isolated systems in organisations, could consequently become possible platforms for corruption and fraud, leading to increase in computer crime. While key risk areas remain, new dangers are emerging. Government stakeholders require departments to be accountable and responsible, which underpins the sharing and exchanging of relevant information, which in turn necessitates the integration of inter- as well as intra-departmental systems. If corruption and fraud is committed in these departments the impact may be significant, including damage to their reputation and image and even detrimental to service delivery to communities. Government and law enforcement agencies all over the world are faced with challenges of combating corruption and fraud. Fighting corruption and fraud committed via computers necessitates the need to close the gaps created by computers which were designed without consideration for future integration. Hence organisations should seek a way to link systems that were developed in isolation in order to simplify and automate business processes to the greatest extent possible. The aim of this study is to discuss factors affecting the implementation of application systems in large organisations with special reference to the South African Department of Defence (SA DOD). Current systems will be studied and a possible approach on how the DOD Vehicle Management Systems could be integrated will be recommended. This study introduces and defines the problem, describes different research methodologies including the methodology that was used. The topics of corruption and fraud, electronic commerce and e-government will be explored through intensive research of the extant literature, drawing interpretations to be applied to the empirical data gathered on fraud and corruption in DOD and on their ITC systems. Finally the findings and recommendations of this research, based on the theoretical and empirical data, will be presented. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Korporatiewe oornames en vennootskappe is algemeen in vandag se kompeterende omgewing. Dit is dus onvermydelik dat daar van ondernemings verwag word om informasie en telekommunikasie stelsels te integreer by die paasvind van sulke verbintenisse. Een van die mees belangrike uitdagings in elke onderneming, veral in die lig van globale markte met die gevolglike kompeterende uitdagings, is die vermoë vir effektiewe interaksie, samewerking en uitruil van inligting met besigheidsvennote en ook in die onderneming self. Talle sagteware stelsels in ondernemings is nie geïntegreer in ʼn homogene struktuur nie en gevolglik, omdat dit nie gesinkroniseer is nie, lei die deel en uitruil van informasie tot moontlike wederregtelike toe-eiening van sulke informasie. Sulke geïsoleerde stelsels in ondernemings kan dus die platvorms word van korrupsie en bedrog en lei tot ʼn verhoging van rekenaarmisdywe. Terwyl sleutel risiko areas steeds van toepassing is, is daar ook weer nuwe gevare wat te voorskyn kom. Die Staat se aandeelhouers vereis dat departemente aanspreeklik en verantwoordelik sal wees wat die belangrikheid van die deel en uitruil van inligting onderstreep en wat op sy beurt weer die integrasie van inter- asook intradepartementele stelsels noodsaak. As misdaad en korrupsie gepleeg word in hierdie departemente mag die impak betekenisvol wees. Dit sluit in skade aan hul reputasie en beeld en kan selfs dienslewering aan gemeenskappe belemmer. Om korrupsie en bedrog wat met rekenaars gepleeg word te beveg, is dit nodig om die gapings toe te maak wat deur ontwerpe geskep is sonder dat toekomstige integrasie inaggeneem is. Ondernenings moet dus ‘n manier soek om stelsels te koppel wat in isolasie ontwikkel was met die doel om besigheidsprosesse tot die grootste moontlike mate te vereenvoudig en te outomatiseer. Die doel van hierdie studie is om die faktore te ondersoek wat die implementering van stelsels beïnvloed in groot ondernemings met spesifieke verwysing na die Suid Afrikaanse Departement van Verdediging (SA DVV). Huidige sisteme sal bestudeer word en ʼn moontlike benadering sal aanbeveel word oor hoe die DVV se Voertuig Bestuurstelsels geintegreer kan word. In hierdie studie word die besiheids- asook die navorsings-probleem gedefineer. Die onderwerpe van korrupsie en bedrog, elektroniese handel en e-regering sal ondersoek word deur intensiewe navorsing van bestaande literatuur te doen. Dit word aangevul deur vertolkings van die hierdie toepaslike literatuur gepaard met empiriese data versameling oor bedrog en korrupsie in die DVV en die Departement se “ITK” stelsels. As finale stap sal die bevindings en aanbevelings van hierdie navorsing, gebasseer op teoretiese en impiriese data, aangebied word.

This thesis analyzes techniques of manipulation of accounting data for the purpose of fraud. It is further looking for methods, which could be capable of detecting these manipulations and it verifies the efficiency of the procedures already in use. A theoretical part studies method of financial analysis, statistical methods, Benford's tests, fuzzy matching and technologies of machine learning. Practical part verifies the methods of financial analysis, Benford's tests, algorithms for fuzzy matching and neural networks.

Imagine a world where someone’s personal information is constantly compromised, where federal government entities AKA Big Brother always knows what anyone is Googling, who an individual is texting, and their emoticons on Twitter. Government entities have been doing this for years; they never cared if they were breaking the law or their moral compass of human dignity. Every day the Federal government blatantly siphons data with programs from the original ECHELON to the new series like PRISM and Xkeyscore so they can keep their tabs on issues that are none of their business; namely, the personal lives of millions. Our allies are taking note; some are learning our bad habits, from Government Communications Headquarters’ (GCHQ) mass shadowing sharing plan to America’s Russian inspiration, SORM. Some countries are following the United States’ poster child pose of a Brave New World like order of global events. Others like Germany are showing their resolve in their disdain for the rise of tyranny. Soon, these new found surveillance troubles will test the resolve of the American Constitution and its nation’s strong love and tradition of liberty. Courts are currently at work to resolve how current concepts of liberty and privacy apply to the current conditions facing the privacy of society. It remains to be determined how liberty will be affected as well; liberty for the United States of America, for the European Union, the Russian Federation and for the people of the World in regards to the extent of privacy in today’s blurred privacy expectations.