Juveniles
Handed Advanced Technology to Further Their Crime Careers
Leslie
K. Penny
Module
2 Written Assignment 1
Chancellor
University
Juveniles
Handed Advanced Technology to Further Their Crime Careers
We have seen on many occasions the ease that juveniles
depict while tinkering on a computer.
It's a well known fact that today's adolescents are virtual slaves to
their computers, cell phones and tablets so it only makes sense that they are more
advanced with the ins and outs of technology than their elders. After all, technology is their element. And, as with any social community, juveniles
will learn and teach other juveniles what they discoverer as they explore and
experiment all the avenues a computer provides them with, whether it be legal
or not. Therefore, its plain to see that
technology has expanded the opportunities for juveniles to commit crimes and
this essay will explain how that is.
The article, "It's Not Just Fun and 'War Games'",
written by J. DeMarco, points out that computer crimes for juveniles are more
readily accessible than property offenses that exist in the "brick and
mortar" world. Juveniles are
extremely aware of the freedom their guardians allow them to have in regards to
internet use and access, which in turn, means pointing the mouse and clicking
with no fear of their actions, even if it means breaking the law. According to the above referenced article,
the typical crime committed by juveniles by way of a computer includes
"trading stolen credit card numbers and amassing thousands of dollars
worth of fraudulent purchases on those cards, or large-scale pirating of
copyrighted computer software which is later sold or bartered to other minors
in exchange for other pirated software" (DeMarco, 2001).
The article brings up another good point. The number of a person's age no longer
matters when they are behind a computer screen.
For all anyone knows, the person on the other end may say they are such
and such age but could very well be 11....13, even 8 years old. Juveniles have access to information they
wouldn't otherwise have access to if their age was known. They can lie about their age without
hesitation to get into sites such as "auction websites, financial service
websites, and chat rooms" (DeMarco, 2001) which allows the juvenile to get themselves
involved with criminal offenses that minors wouldn't have access to
previously. Criminal activity that they
can do from the comforts of their bedroom along with other "computer
delinquents" (DeMarco, 2001).
It doesn't help that parents and adult figures aren't available or don't
make themselves available to constantly supervise the minors and that minors
have access to the internet even while doing homework but, as the article
referenced above points out, parental controls aren't going to stop kids from
doing their thing on the internet.
We also have to look into the moral and ethics that some
juveniles seem to be lacking that further makes it easier for them to cross
that line between legal and not legal. DeMarco's
article points out a study that he referenced as coming from Bowker, "Juveniles
and Computers", of university graduates, where 34 percent "admitted
to illegally pirating copyrighted software, and 16 percent admitted to gaining
illegal access to a computer system to browse or exchange information" (DeMarco, 2001). What this writer finds disturbing is the poll
that DeMarco lists in his article that states 47,235 elementary and middle
school students do not consider hacking to be a crime. This writer has a child that falls in that
age group that has no idea what or who a hacker is. With that being said this writer doesn't
believe that study should have been used as evidence to support DeMarco's
point, but it is true all the same in regards to more sophisticated
knowledgeable juveniles. Many juveniles
don't see the seriousness of the offense they are conducting or are not aware
of the laws. And, according to, Bowker
in his article, "The Advent of the Computer Delinquent", the computer
further assists the juvenile in getting away with the fraud after it has become
known.
One thing is for certain, and as projections are proving
right, as technology advances, more and more juveniles are gaining access to
online material. Bowker goes on to point
out that according to an analysis found in the May 10th, 1999, edition of Newsweek, many parents do not take the
time to observe and monitor their children's computer usage leaving the child
to their own devices. Children, who may
have never gotten involved with online criminal activity, but are so
particularly because their internet usage was not monitored by adults. Thankfully, Bowker's findings do show that
some parents are being proactive in regards to their children's online activities,
pointing out that "38 percent of the parents of the younger group and 9
percent of the parents of the older group reported that they sit with their
children while they are on-line" (Bowker, 2000).
Another thing to point out is that as technology
advances, more serious crimes become more easily accomplished by
juveniles. Bowker explains in his
article that today's delinquents can effortlessly, with the help of a computer,
conduct a "five-figure or other high-tech crime" (Bowker, 2000).
The fear is there when one thinks of what juvenile hackers are capable
of in regards to chaos and disaster that they could very well produce such as
"disrupt or manipulate safety functions, such as traffic signals, air
traffic control, floodgates, or power grids" etc. (Bowker, 2000).
In conclusion, as one can see there are quite a few
reasons as to how technology has made it easier for juveniles to commit cyber
crime. Computers make criminal activity
all the more accessible and all the more thrilling for juveniles to
master. It's a mystique that draws
juveniles in and crimes such as music and movie piracy are a daily offense
committed by many juveniles who think what they are doing is fine or in the
very least, think no one will ever know so what's the big deal. That is the unfortunate aspect. It is pretty well known, in regards to piracy,
with all the FBI warnings on movies and the warning for music that there is no
way juveniles are not seeing what they are doing is breaking the law but in
their view point it is not a big deal at all.
How does an agency keep track of all those 99 cent tunes being stolen
off Bearshare or MP3 Skull.com? Time
will tell. We already witnessed the fall
of LimeWire in 2010 (http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/oct/27/limewire-shut-down). There will be more.
Works Cited
Bowker, A. (2000). The Advent of the Computer
Delinquent. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin , 7-11.
DeMarco, J. (2001).
It's Not Just Fun and "War Games". Juveniles and Computer Crime
, 49-56.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/oct/27/limewire-shut-down
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