Did you know that in 2020 more than 25000 people in the United States of America were subject to phishing? Just after phishing, the second most common type of internet crime was products not getting delivered. Keeping in mind the digital era in which we are living, cybercrime has become more common than ever before.
This is probably the reason why around 155 countries have introduced their cybercrime legislation to control this. Despite having such laws, cybercriminals are in no way scared to steal personal information and money from innocent companies and individuals. Small business companies and startup firms are some of the biggest targets for Cyber criminals. While you can definitely seek the help of law firms like King Law, it is still better to be aware of the most common types of Cybercrimes prevalent these days. Keep reading to know more.
- Digital impersonation
Digital impersonation is by far the most frequently committed online crime. It is considered a criminal act when you use someone else’s name, phone number, domain address, or any other piece of identifying data without his consent. Although it is a common instance these days to come across people who pretend to be someone else, this is actually a crime.
- Cyberbullying
Whenever a person or a group of people leverage social networking platforms to harass, intimidate, or belittle others, this is known as cyberbullying. While there are some laws that are only applicable to students, there are some others that can be applied to everyone. Generally, when a person, whether a student or not, uses any form of digital communication to harass, threaten, or scare, this is definitely criminal conduct.
- Social network fraud
Creating fake profiles and sending messages to unknown users on social networking platforms is called social network fraud. whenever a person using social media creates a profile with the name of another person and without his consent, this should be taken as a criminal act. However, the person commits a crime only when he uses the fake profile to cause harm, intimidate or scare someone with fake messages.
- Identity theft
Much before the development of the web and internet, there was this concern of Identity theft. the only difference these days is that technology has helped identity theft flourish like never before. Today, identity thieves are utilizing computers to sell bank account details, social security numbers, and credit card details. despite identity theft being illegal it still continues to build momentum. Very soon, identity theft will become the most frequently committed digital crime.
- Internet piracy
This kind of crime is not very common these days but it still occurs in various areas of the internet. As long as internet piracy is concerned, this crime involves the illegal circulation of copyrighted material without the owner’s consent. such materials can include video games, movies, ebooks, and also the different kinds of software on the internet.
Therefore, if you’re an internet user, you should be careful and smart enough to dodge these crimes. Report them as soon as you spot them.