Computer-related crime rates doubled in 2002 from the previous year, causing an estimated $6 billion of damage to Russian Internet users, the Interior Ministry said Friday. The ministry last year registered 6,251 high-tech crimes, mainly hacking and online theft, said Konstantin Machabeli, deputy head of the Interior Ministry’s technology crime department. He did not provide exact statistics for 2001. “New technologies develop rapidly so it is no wonder criminals can figure out ways to take advantage of them quickly,” Machabeli said at a news conference. The ministry’s high-tech crimes department said its investigations included theft of classified business information, stolen credit card numbers sent to online businesses and pirated software. Law enforcement officials believe the actual number of computer crimes could be much higher than the reported cases. Only about 10 percent of computer crimes are officially registered with the police, they say. Many victims are reluctant to report computer crimes because they fear it could damage their business reputations, Machabeli said. Full Story
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