The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, act as legal, financial or credit advice; instead, it is for general informational purposes only. Information on this website may not be current. This website may contain links to other third-party websites. Such links are only for the convenience of the reader, user or browser; we do not recommend or endorse the contents of any third-party sites. Readers of this website should contact their attorney, accountant or credit counselor to obtain advice with respect to their particular situation. No reader, user, or browser of this site should act or not act on the basis of information on this site. Always seek personal legal, financial or credit advice for your relevant jurisdiction. Only your individual attorney or advisor can provide assurances that the information contained herein – and your interpretation of it – is applicable or appropriate to your particular situation. Use of, and access to, this website or any of the links or resources contained within the site do not create an attorney-client or fiduciary relationship between the reader, user, or browser and website owner, authors, contributors, contributing firms, or their respective employers.
Credit.com receives compensation for the financial products and services advertised on this site if our users apply for and sign up for any of them. Compensation is not a factor in the substantive evaluation of any product.
The Manhattan, New York, district attorney’s office recently received approval for funding of a new lab that would help it to more effectively fight cybercrime.
The agency will receive $4.2 million from the New York City Council to improve its ability to effectively track down digital clues related to many of its cases, according to a report from the DA’s office. Today, everything from identity theft and financial fraud to violent crimes such as murder has at least some cyber component, and having the ability to better assess issues related to that may be critical for law enforcement officials.
“Cybercrime and identity theft are among the fastest growing crimes in the country,” said Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance. “Advances in technology have also changed the way we fight crime. Nearly every case we prosecute — financial fraud, terrorism, even street crimes — depends upon the resources and expertise of my Office’s Cybercrime and Identity Theft Bureau and its High Technology Analysis Unit.”
The Manhattan Cybercrime and Identity Theft Bureau will oversee the city’s High Technology Analysis Unit lab, which currently analyzes digital media, but will be able to do so on a far broader scale, the report said. This includes analyzing cellphones, smartphones, computers, storage devices and more. This new lab will also make it easier for other agencies across the city to properly devote resources to other aspects of investigations by centralizing digital forensic efforts.
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn noted that this new funding and lab was essential to New York’s ability to keep up with technological advancements that are being employed by criminals and law enforcement alike, the report said. As crimes of all kinds become more complex, having a greater ability to analyze every clue will be critical to closing cases and making the city safer.
Identity theft affects millions of Americans every year, whether they know it or not. This kind of crime can happen in many ways, including phishing scams by phone or email, by a criminal gaining access to consumers’ personal information, and even hacking attacks that can compromise entire computer networks and scan them for critical data. As such, consumers need to do more to protect their information in any way they possibly can.
Image: Bex Walton, via Flickr
October 19, 2023
Identity Theft and Scams
May 17, 2022
Identity Theft and Scams
May 20, 2021
Identity Theft and Scams