G-men target e-crime

By Sharon Gaudin
Network World, 06/26/00

Target graphic The Tim Lloyd computer sabotage trial may be the first of its kind, but agents at the U.S. Secret Service expect it won't be the last.

"This will be the crime of the future," says Leo Jackson, an assistant to the Special Agent in Charge with the Secret Service. " Four years ago, we were in the infancy stage in terms of technology. We're more prepared today. . . . The reason why we're expanding the number of people we have and dedicating more manpower and training is because we see the future."

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The Secret Service, which splits its focus between protecting heads of state and conducting criminal investigations, is one of the government's biggest weapons against computer crime. With technology advancing at Internet speed, staying ahead of the learning curve has become a major focus for the government's fastest-growing agency.

The Electronic Crimes Special Agent Program began with a handful of specially trained agents back in 1987. Today, that number has grown to 155, and it's expected to exceed 200 by year-end. The agency also is giving current agents specific electronic crime training, recruiting new agents with high-tech skills, working with industry leaders and analyzing new technology and products before they even hit the market.

This push is based on the fact that agents see high-tech as the basis for an increasing amount of crime - whether it be corporate sabotage, credit card fraud or the newest tool for organized crime. Computers and the Internet give criminals their chance to be borderless and anonymous.

"Why would I sell drugs on the street, when I could jump on the Internet tonight [and steal some money that way]? " says the Secret Service's Ray Ventura. "It's low-risk crime. You're in your house, in the privacy of your own home. . . . This is the future. We're going to do whatever it takes to keep pace. "

The Secret Service also is focusing on analyzing new products and services, and alerting the vendor to any security weaknesses they find.

"Recently, we have made a special effort to contact companies that we have found have systemic weaknesses in products they're offering, " Lugo says.

And the new technology they're watching the closest is wireless.

"You have multiapplication devices going wireless, " Lugo says. "All that information is being transmitted out in the open. "

The upshot of these efforts is that the Secret Service is changing the commonly held view that the average computer criminals can outsmart the average law enforcement official.

"People think, �I can do this and how can they ever trace it?' " Ventura says. "I don't think they comprehend the experts we're putting in the field. "

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Contact Features Writer Sharon Gaudin