Chapter 5 Key Terms

Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)

A collaborative effort of the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C) and the FBI operating for crime victims, consumers, and researchers to understand the scope of various forms of online fraud. Victims can contact the agency through an online reporting mechanism that accepts complaints for a range of offenses

Identification document

A document made or issued by or under the authority of a government with information concerning a particular individual intended to serve as a form of identification

Pump and dump messages

A form of spam-enabled fraud that attempts to manipulate the value of corporate stocks

"Secret shopper" scheme

A form of spam-enabled fraud where sellers pretend to operate legitimate businesses that are seeking employees who can cash checks and purchase goods with the proceeds

"Work-at-home" schemes

A form of spam-enabled fraud where the seller promises recipients substantial earnings for just a few hours of work per day

Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC)

A joint effort between the RCMP, Ontario Provincial Police, and the Competition Bureau, that collects reports on various forms of fraud that take place online and offline

Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG)

A not-for-profit global consortium of researchers, computer security professionals, financial industry members, and law enforcement designed to document the scope of phishing attacks and provide policy recommendations to government and industry groups worldwide

Advance fee email schemes

A scheme where a spam mail sender requests a small amount of money up front from the recipient in order to share a larger sum of money later.

Ripper

A seller in carding markets who does not provide data after being paid, is slow to respond to customers, or sells bad data and does not offer to replace their products

Unverified seller

A seller in carding markets who has not provided a sample of data to a forum moderator or administrator, or alternatively offering malware or other services to be reviewed

Verified seller

A seller in carding markets who has provided a sample of data to a forum moderator or administrator, or alternatively offering malware or other services to be reviewed

Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

An independent watchdog agency within the US federal government responsible for consumer protection and monitoring the business community

419 scams

Another term for advance fee email schemes. The name references the Nigerian legal statutes that are used to prosecute fraud.

Personally Identifiable Information (PII)

Information that is unique to an individual that can be used on its own or with other information to identify, locate, or contact a single individual

Carding markets

Markets that enable individuals to efficiently engage in credit card fraud and identity theft with minimal effort and limited technological knowledge or skill

National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB)

The NFIB collect information on various forms of fraud and aggregates this data along with reports from business and industry sources into a large database called the NFIB Know Fraud system. It is operated by the City of London police.

Action Fraud

The UK national agency that handles complaints of Internet-based fraud

Customs and Border Patrol (CBP)

The US federal agency responsible for policing and managing the borders of the country and the movement of products in and out of the nation

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

The US federal agency which manages thew processing and prosecution of illegal immigrants and the movement of materials through the borders of the nation

Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act of 1998

The US law made it a federal firme to possess, transfer, or use a means of identification of another person without authorization with the intent to commit or aid in the commission of illegal activity at the local, state, or federal level

Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003

The US law that provides multiple protections to help reduce the risk of identity theft and assist victims in repairing their credit in the event of identity theft

Personal Identification Number (PIN)

The four-digit number used as a password to secure access to bank accounts at ATMs

Data Breaches

The illegal acquisition of mass quantities of information through hacking techniques

National Fraud Authority (NFA)

This UK agency was formed in 2008 in order to increase cooperation between the public and private sectors to investigate fraud

Identity Theft Penalty Enhancement Act of 2003

This US act added two years to any prison sentence for individuals convicted of a felony who knowingly possessed, used, or transferred identity documents of another person

Identity Theft Enforcement and Restitution Act or 2008

This US federal act allows offenders to be ordered to pay restitution as a penalty to victims of identity theft and enhanced existing laws regarding cybercrime

Carding

When an individual sells personally identifiable information acquired in some fashion via markets operating online, most often involving the use and abuse of credit and debit card details

Identity Fraud

Within the UK, this term refers to the illegal misuse of a document made or issued by or under the authority of the government

Identity Theft

Within the US, this term refers to the unlawful use or possession of a means of identification of another person with the intent to commit, aid, or abet illegal activity

Fraud

Wrongful or criminal deception intended to result in financial or personal gain

Phishing

using email messages to try to acquire bank account information from victims