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FEBRUARY 1990
FLORIDA'S COMPUTER CRIME
In an attempt to gauge the impact of computer crime in the
State, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE)
conducted a comprehensive survey of the local law enforcement
community, State Attorneys' Offices and area businesses. The
survey was part of FDLE's continuing goal of assessing changing
crime problems and trends in Florida. The primary purpose of the
study was to determine the extent of computer crime in Florida
and to assess the impact it may be having on law enforcement
agencies and prosecutors in the State.
For purposes of this study, computer crime was defined as
any crime in which the computer was either the tool or the object
of the crime. In other words, the computer had to be an
essential part of the crime.
A total of 1,300 surveys were sent to law enforcement
agencies, State prosecutors and businesses. Three different
survey questionnaires were developed for each of the three groups
included in the study. All police, sheriff and public safety
departments in Florida received questionnaires, as well as 20
State Attorneys' Offices and 898 public and private Florida
businesses. The rate of return was 73.6% for law enforcement,
90% for State Attorneys, and 44.9% for businesses.
The businesses surveyed consisted of organizations that had
computer systems currently in operation at their facilities.
Included in this group were universities, defense firms,
government agencies, service industries and companies from other
fields. A formula was used to ensure a representative sample of
businesses. One business per 40,000 county population was
selected, with a minimum of 2 businesses selected from counties
with a population less than 40,000.
The State Attorneys' Offices surveyed indicated a steady
rise in the number of computer-related crimes prosecuted by their
offices. The study revealed, though, that the number of cases
handled by prosecutors is still much lower than the actual number
of computer crimes reported. The report attributes this
discrepancy to the fact that in many computer-related cases, no
suspect is identified, thereby precluding the need for further
legal action in the case.
Of the business respondents, 24.2% indicated that within the
last 12 months, they had experienced some type of verifiable
computer crime, ranging from theft of computer soft/hardware,
unauthorized use of computer resources, to destruction/
alteration of computer data. One-fifth of the businesses
reported verifiable monetary losses attributed to computer
crime.
Perhaps the most disturbing findings of the survey concern
the ability of law enforcement to adequately combat computer
crime. Business respondents were asked to rate the ability of
Federal, State and local authorities to effectively investigate
computer crime based on the previous experience of the
respondent. Federal agencies were given a fair to good rating,
and State law agencies received a fair mark, while local law
enforcement was given a poor rating. This response would perhaps
explain another finding of the survey: 65% of the business
respondents said that they do not report any type of
computer-related crime to authorities.
The survey revealed that among local law enforcement
agencies, 64% handled computer-related crimes using standard
investigative procedures.
One-fifth of the responding departments assigned computer
cases to an investigator with special expertise in computer crime
investigation.
Among the law enforcement and State Attorneys' respondents,
there was an overwhelming consensus that there was not adequate
computer crime training available to local law enforcement
agencies. These respondents also indicated that if a case does
go to trial, juries have difficulty understanding the
complexities of computer crime.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement recommends some
steps for departments interested in improving computer-related
crime investigations. These include sponsoring enrollment in
basic computer operations courses to orient investigators to the
many functions and uses (and potential misuses) of computers. In
addition, the study concludes, successful prosecution depends on
improving specific computer crime investigative techniques.
ABOUT THE ARTICLE:
This information, provided by Special Agent Jeff Herig,
Florida Department of Law Enforcement, was compiled into a report
entitled Computer Crime in Florida, 1989.