by In the United States, the Internet Crime Complaint Center serves as a critical component of the FBI’s efforts to combat cybercrime. The center’s website provides educational resources to help individuals and businesses protect themselves from cyber threats and also allows them to report their victimization by submitting complaints related to internet crimes. The Internet Crime Complaint Center also publishes annual reports summarizing the current state of internet crime, trends and notable cases.
However, the information and resources, including the reporting form, posted on the center’s website are only in English. This excludes a significant number of internet users and victims of cybercrime: people with limited English proficiency. In addition to leaving out many people who are more vulnerable to cyber threats, one consequence is that the Internet Crime Complaint Center’s annual Internet Crime Reports are incomplete and inaccurate.
The lack of information and resources on cyber security and internet safety in languages other than English on the Internet Crime Complaint Center website widens the “security gap”, a divide that has developed between those who can manage and mitigate potential cyber security threats and those unable to manage and mitigate cyber security threats. . Due to the lack of an appropriate reporting mechanism and structure for people with limited English proficiency to report their victimization, data and statistics regarding cyber victimization in this population are severely limited.
Cybercrime and prevention
I am a criminologist. My colleagues and I conducted focus groups with a sample of adult internet users with limited English proficiency to examine their experiences with nine types of cybercrime and to explore their knowledge of cyber security. The study is to be published in an upcoming issue of the International Journal of Cybersecurity Intelligence and Cybercrime.
We recruited 18 Spanish internet users and six Vietnamese internet users for the study based on evidence that people with limited English proficiency in the US tend to be Latino or Asian, and among Asian ethnic groups the Vietnamese Americans are least proficient in English.
We asked participants if they had experienced any of the following during the previous 12 months:
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They received a phishing email, which is a deceptive message with the aim of tricking them into revealing sensitive information, such as login credentials, personal details or financial information.
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His computer was infected with a computer virus.
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They got harassed online; for example, a message from someone who has threatened, insulted or harassed them.
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They were the victim of an online scam; for example, they sent money to an individual or organization they met online and later discovered they had misrepresented themselves.
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They were informed that their financial account had been hacked.
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They were notified that their email, social media, shopping or other account had been hacked.
Study participants were involved in all nine types of cybercrime. The most common types of cyber victimization they experienced were a computer virus, reported by seven participants; phishing emails, reported by six participants; notification that their financial account had been hacked and their personal data was at risk, six participants reported; and notification that another type of account had been hacked, six participants reported.
We asked participants if they had adopted the following cyber security measures during the previous 12 months:
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Have anti-virus, anti-spyware or firewall software installed on their computer and laptop.
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Create strong passwords for their online accounts.
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Use a two-factor authentication procedure.
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Avoid unsecured wireless networks such as free Wi-Fi at airports.
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Avoid websites that aren’t protected by Secure Sockets Layer, or SSL, encryption, which means looking for URLs to start with https instead of http.
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Use a strong password or encryption to secure their home wireless network.
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Employ email filters to block suspicious senders and attachments.
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Check email addresses and attachments to avoid phishing and online scams.
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Be careful when providing personal information to a third party.
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Take extra steps like shredding documents with personal information to prevent data theft.
The answer options were yes, no and I don’t know. In all cases except for creating strong passwords, more participants reported “no” than “yes,” and in all cases, the combination of participants reporting “no” and “I don’t know” exceeded the number of participants reporting ” No” significantly. yes.”
The security gap was closed
Executive Order 13166, signed in 2000, requires federal agencies to improve access to services for people with limited English proficiency. Attorney General Merrick Garland issued a memorandum on November 21, 2022, directing the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division to share best practices and exchange information with other federal agencies.
I believe it is important to close the security gap and get accurate data and statistics on cyber victimization. Internet and computer-based crime is one of the fastest growing security threats in the US
To get a complete and accurate picture of the problem, victims with limited English fluency as well as those who are educated in English must be included in the data and statistics regarding cybercrime and cybervictimization.
And just as health and safety related public campaigns tend to be available in multiple languages to reach different audiences, I believe that all users, regardless of their language skills, should have the knowledge and skills to to protect themselves from cybercrime.
This article is republished from The Conversation, a non-profit, independent news organization that brings you facts and analysis to help you make sense of our complex world.
It was written by: Fawn Ngo, University of South Florida.
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I, Fawn Ngo, received an internal grant, the Creative Scholarship Grant, from my institution, the University of South Florida, to provide gift cards to focus group participants. In return for their time, each participant received a $25 Target gift card. I received no external funding.
