Here is another example of the serious recognition by law enforcement of the various kinds of cyber crimes, and how they are attempting to cooperate to address these problems. From the STrib:
High tech crime calls for high-tech crimefighting
- Article by: PAUL LEVY , Star Tribune
- Updated: May 29, 2012 - 4:44 PM
Anoka County law enforcement hosted two-day conference to teach others how to track crooks by following cyber trails.
A botnet is a collection of compromised computers connected to the Internet. Schmidt is the senior manager of investigation of Microsoft's digital crimes unit. And, besides the fact that Schmidt grew up in Spring Lake Park, what do botnets have to do with Anoka County?
Quite a bit, actually.
Members of the Anoka County attorney and sheriff's offices -- considered local pioneers in the investigation of cyber crime and the use of computer forensics -- met recently with investigative and crime specialists from Microsoft. The two-day closed conference at Anoka-Ramsey Community College in Coon Rapids offered strategies in fighting modern crimes with modern technology.
Topics included e-mail header analysis, social networking, instant messaging, steganography (writing hidden messages), basic encryption, anonymization techniques, Internet service providers and domain name systems. These are topics that many law enforcement officials might never have approached 10 years ago. But for a video-game-playing, text-messaging generation that has grown up wearing ear buds and considers a cellphone to be the modern-day pocket watch, using all this technology is as natural as breathing.
(read more here)
In revisiting the problem communication in our harassment problem, it was surprising how far back it went, and how much of it we have. The volume as well as the quality of the communication was a shock when we revisited it, and we have yet to get through it all. We are fortunate to be assisted by trained law enforcement specialists who in turn have access to other specialized help.
I am a cyber-luddite of sorts, in that I only tend to learn the techno-tricks that I need. I have been fortunate to have someone teaching me much more during the course of our battles with the harassment problems. If we were on our own, if we had to rely on our own very limited techno-expertise this would be going much more slowly, if at all. For what I am learning, I am very grateful.
But apart from that leap forward that I'm sure must seem obvious to those who do a better job of staying current with techno-developments, (go ahead, roll your eyes here), there is the element that I suspect we have in common with other victims of this kind of abuse. You argue with yourselves about acting, about doing something that will escalate the problem. You worry about not wanting to cause difficulty to others, the 'turn the other cheek' conundrum.
In looking through past communication, I realized that I had passed that point where I was willing to try to negotiate or reason, I was at the point where I no longer was willing to put up with the crap that harassment entails in order to protect the harasser from the consequences of their bad behavior.
I had reached a tipping point, and in consultation with my blogging partners, WE had reached a tipping point, a point where we would no longer go back to just trying to cope with it, or ignore it, or try to tolerate it. We just really no longer care why someone does this kind of thing, but we care very much about stopping it from going through another cycle. We are determined to stop it permanently, not temporarily. It is an important stage to reach for anyone who has to deal with these kinds of harassers, the point where you will learn how to do what you need to do, acquire the techno-expertise, and the determination to stay on the phone or make as many contacts as necessary with those who are in control, either law enforcement or the technical community such as the companies who handle the IP end of things. You have to reach the point where you are willing to take the lead to see that what needs doing gets done, even when it is dull and time consuming, and when you might get put on hold a lot or transferred six times to the wrong people before you get the right people.
Because when you get the right people, finally, it all starts to turn around. And when it begins to turn around, then life is better for you, and it is going to be better for every other person who has been harassed that won't be harassed again in the future, THAT makes the effort worthwhile. The Tech stuff? that turns out to be a blast, the whipped cream with hot fudge and sprinkles on the whole gooey good Sundae with a cherry on top. I actually LIKE it!
Quite a bit, actually.
Members of the Anoka County attorney and sheriff's offices -- considered local pioneers in the investigation of cyber crime and the use of computer forensics -- met recently with investigative and crime specialists from Microsoft. The two-day closed conference at Anoka-Ramsey Community College in Coon Rapids offered strategies in fighting modern crimes with modern technology.
Topics included e-mail header analysis, social networking, instant messaging, steganography (writing hidden messages), basic encryption, anonymization techniques, Internet service providers and domain name systems. These are topics that many law enforcement officials might never have approached 10 years ago. But for a video-game-playing, text-messaging generation that has grown up wearing ear buds and considers a cellphone to be the modern-day pocket watch, using all this technology is as natural as breathing.
(read more here)
In revisiting the problem communication in our harassment problem, it was surprising how far back it went, and how much of it we have. The volume as well as the quality of the communication was a shock when we revisited it, and we have yet to get through it all. We are fortunate to be assisted by trained law enforcement specialists who in turn have access to other specialized help.
I am a cyber-luddite of sorts, in that I only tend to learn the techno-tricks that I need. I have been fortunate to have someone teaching me much more during the course of our battles with the harassment problems. If we were on our own, if we had to rely on our own very limited techno-expertise this would be going much more slowly, if at all. For what I am learning, I am very grateful.
But apart from that leap forward that I'm sure must seem obvious to those who do a better job of staying current with techno-developments, (go ahead, roll your eyes here), there is the element that I suspect we have in common with other victims of this kind of abuse. You argue with yourselves about acting, about doing something that will escalate the problem. You worry about not wanting to cause difficulty to others, the 'turn the other cheek' conundrum.
In looking through past communication, I realized that I had passed that point where I was willing to try to negotiate or reason, I was at the point where I no longer was willing to put up with the crap that harassment entails in order to protect the harasser from the consequences of their bad behavior.
I had reached a tipping point, and in consultation with my blogging partners, WE had reached a tipping point, a point where we would no longer go back to just trying to cope with it, or ignore it, or try to tolerate it. We just really no longer care why someone does this kind of thing, but we care very much about stopping it from going through another cycle. We are determined to stop it permanently, not temporarily. It is an important stage to reach for anyone who has to deal with these kinds of harassers, the point where you will learn how to do what you need to do, acquire the techno-expertise, and the determination to stay on the phone or make as many contacts as necessary with those who are in control, either law enforcement or the technical community such as the companies who handle the IP end of things. You have to reach the point where you are willing to take the lead to see that what needs doing gets done, even when it is dull and time consuming, and when you might get put on hold a lot or transferred six times to the wrong people before you get the right people.
Because when you get the right people, finally, it all starts to turn around. And when it begins to turn around, then life is better for you, and it is going to be better for every other person who has been harassed that won't be harassed again in the future, THAT makes the effort worthwhile. The Tech stuff? that turns out to be a blast, the whipped cream with hot fudge and sprinkles on the whole gooey good Sundae with a cherry on top. I actually LIKE it!
Your harasser is of the opinion that he knows it all because he happens to have a couple of patents to his name. This couldn't be further from the truth.
ReplyDeleteFirst off,there are CIVIL as well as criminal ramifications for his actions should he continue his course of action.
He might want to try to get his tiny brain around that one, but I willgive him a hint--his efforts will enrich you rather than him--especially if he is criminally convicted.
Conservatives talk about personal responsibility, and this one should take it if he is sleeping on his parents', or friend's, sofa. Or worse.
It is his fault whatever befalls him if he doesn't grow up.
The fact that he may have some intelligence, although an idiot savant could also get a patent, should cause him to not only use whatever intelligence he may possess to become socially adept.
Part of that is being able to debate in an intelligent manner, which he seems incapable of doing.
I will have to spell it out for him that he needs to address the issues and specifically refute them rather than act immature.
Unless, Conservative does mean acting in an immature and idiotic manner in US English.