Monday, February 28, 2011

2010 Report from the Internet Crime Complaint Center

The 2010 Internet Crime Report notes that non-delivery of payments or merchandise, scams impersonating the FBI, and identity theft were the most reported complaints to the IC3 last year.
The 2010 Internet Crime Report demonstrates how pervasive online crime has become, affecting people in all demographic groups. The report provides specific details about various crimes, their victims and the perpetrators. It also shows how IC3 continually adapts its methods to meet the needs of the public and law enforcement.
Complaints from the US lead all nations and Washington State was 7th among states with citizens reporting problems.

The report also summarizes complaints about a counterfeit check scheme targeting US law firms.
In a new twist, the fraudulent client seeking legal representation is an ex-wife “on assignment” in an Asian country, and she claims to be pursuing a collection of divorce settlement monies from her ex-husband in the U.S. The law firm agrees to represent the ex-wife, sends an e-mail to the ex-husband, and receives a “certified” check for the settlement via delivery service. The ex-wife instructs the firm to wire the funds, less the retainer fee, to an overseas bank account. When the scam is executed successfully, the law firm wires the money before discovering the check is counterfeit.
The IC3 was established in 2000 (then called the Internet Fraud Complaint Center. It now receives more than 25,000 complaints a month.

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