GovBytes: Cyber-Crime Grew in 2011

Crime on the Internet is trending up, which is no surprise with the explosive growth of the Internet. Cyber-crime
complaints were up 3.4 percent in 2011 from 2010 according to the latest latest Report on Internet Crime by the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). The IC3 is a partnership between the FBI, White Collar Crime Center, and Bureau of Justice, which reports its findings and complaints to law enforcement at all levels of government.

Among the most reported cyber-crimes in 2011 were non-payments for purchased items, fraud, scammers acting as the Federal Bureau of Investigations, and identity theft.

Top 10 States for Internet Crime

Unsurprisingly, the statistics of states with the most complaints of cyber-crime correlate heavily with the most populated states. States with the most complaints are listed in order below.

1. California
2. Florida
3. Texas
4. New York
5. Ohio
6. New Jersey
7. Pennsylvania
8. Illinois
9. Virginia
10. Washington

When ranked per 100,000 residents, the top 10 states for cyber-crime list looks much different:

1. Alaska
2. District of Columbia
3. New Jersey
4. Nevada
5. Colorado
6. Ohio
7. Maryland
8. Florida
9. Virginia
10. Washington

What steps can people take to protect themselves from cyber-crime?