Cybercrime—Enforcement Difficulties

Canadian law enforcement officials are expressing concern that the growth of new internet access technologies is making it more difficult for them to track criminal activity.^[1] Since widespread access to the Internet began to blossom in the 1990s, it has been seen as “an ideal breeding ground for fringe groups to thrive,” mainly because of its versatility and anonymity.^[2] One of the key tools available to law enforcement in locating suspects, the suspects’ IP addresses, may be going by the wayside as wireless networking becomes the next big thing in internet connectivity.^[3]

Toronto, for example, is proposing a city-wide wireless network, which would allow individuals to connect to the Internet from nearly any point in the city.^[4] As Det. Const. Scott Purches, a Canadian undercover officer in charge of tracking child pornography online, says “If I take off my policeman hat, I think it’s great. ... But, as an officer, I’m very aware of the pitfalls.”^[5] This is because a person who accesses the internet through a fixed location, such as the home, or wirelessly at a café offering free wireless networking, does so through a given IP address, which can pinpoint reasonably well the physical location assigned to that connection. If the suspect accesses a city-wide network, he still has an IP address and law enforcement may be able to pinpoint the closest access point, and perhaps even the specific computer, but after that, it’s difficult to pinpoint the person.

Law enforcement concerns have grown because there have been a number of recent successes—such as the recent Canadian terrorism arrests which was made possible “in part by the ability of authorities to monitor the suspects’ online activities,” and the “Kiddypics & Kiddyvids” arrests. Terrorism and child pornography, however, are by no means the only cybercrimes. According to Robert Ing, “a forensic intelligence specialist,” identity theft has become an extremely simply undertaking, and he says that “it has now become the most prevalent crime perpetrated on the Internet, surpassing the still common practice of credit card fraud.”^[6]

As law enforcement begins to address the changing landscape, we expect to see a number of location-finding technologies begin to proposed. For example, if municipal Wi-Fi becomes de rigueur, perhaps computers and laptops will have to come pre-installed with GPS chips which can never be switched off. Currently, a number of cell phones have GPS chips in them,^[7] purportedly for 911 capabilities, and most if not all allow the option of turning off the GPS functions (except for emergency personnel), but perhaps it will become mandatory for the devices to be permanently on.

---

[1] Michelle Mcquigge, New Technology and Savvy Net Users Make Cybercrime Tough for Police to Crack, Canadian Press (via Canada.com), Jun. 11, 2006.
[2] Id.
[3] Id.
[4] Id.
[5] Id.
[6] Id.
[7] See, e.g., Brendan I. Koerner, Your Cellphone is a Homing Device, Legal Affairs, Jul./Aug. 2003; Online Real-Time GPS Cell Phone Tracking, AccuTracking.com, last visited Jun. 12, 2006 (offering the ability to “see real-time locations, speed, and headings of your children/family members or cars/vehicles and receive email or SMS alerts when they move across the designated areas or exceeds speed limit.”). Some phones that have GPS features installed: LG 4400, LG VX4400B, Motorola T1210, Motorola T720, Nokia 3585i, Samsung A310, Samsung SCHa530; see Mike Healan, Cell Phones Broadcast Your Location, Spywareinfo.com, Jan. 12, 2004.