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Computer CrimeThere has been a great deal of debate among experts on just what constitutes a computer crime or a computer-related crime. Even after several years, there is no internationally recognized definition of those terms. A global definition of computer crime has not been achieved; rather, functional definitions have been the norm. Computer crime can involve criminal activities that are traditional in nature, such as
theft, fraud, forgery and mischief, all of which are generally subject everywhere to
criminal sanctions. The computer has also created a host of potentially new misuses or
abuses that may, or should, be criminal as well. The burgeoning of the world of information technologies has, however, a negative side: it has opened the door to criminal behavior in ways that would never have previously been possible. Computer systems offer some new and highly sophisticated opportunities for law-breaking, and they create the potential to commit traditional types of crimes in non-traditional ways. In addition to suffering the economic consequences of computer crime, society relies on computerized systems for almost everything in life, from air, train and bus traffic control to medical service coordination and national security. Even a small glitch in the operation of these systems can put human lives in danger. Society's dependence on computer systems, therefore, has a profound human dimension. The rapid transnational expansion of large-scale computer networks and the ability to access many systems through regular telephone lines increases the vulnerability of these systems and the opportunity for misuse or criminal activity. The consequences of computer crime may have serious economic costs as well as serious costs in terms of human security. In May of 1997 Novell succeeded in making arrests in a computer piracy ring in Sweden |