Dr. Hollington and Peers,
Malicious software, often called malware, has been changing over the years especially since the start of the 2000s. As our textbook states (Taylor et al., 2019), when computers were first invented security wasn’t the top priority. This last 2 decades have had so many advances in technology that it has become hard for everyone to keep up. Since the advancement of technology, malicious software has advanced as well. The advances have made it easier and faster to spread malicious software. Since the increase of malicious software there has been an increase in damages and thus an increase in the creation of ways to protect oneself such as anti-virus protection (Taylor et al., 2019).
In the earlier days virus writers were originally writing malware and viruses as a form of a joke or to “brag” about their abilities. As time has gone on, there has been more ways for these hackers to use malware to get a variety of different things that they want. Often this means some sort of financial gain (Taylor et al., 2019). That is often why the type of malware used specifically for profit are referred to as “crime-ware”. This creates a lot of challenges for investigators.
A good example of the rise in malware for profit gain is shown throughout the pandemic (Minnaar, 2020). Since the increase of panic during the pandemic it led to many people using the internet to search for answers. This gave ample opportunities for people to create fake websites and emailed links that prey on the fear of those who have COVID to spread malware and conduct fraud like identity theft. There was also an increase of those getting laid off or needing to work from home therefore increasing their internet time and vulnerabilities. As Minnaar (2020) states, the use of ransomware was higher than it’s ever been at the beginning of the pandemic. It continued to increase as the pandemic went on.
I think that investigators might struggle in keeping up with the different fake sites and techniques that are occurring. They can try their best to make sure to take down new fake sites as they come up and to train themselves on how to recognize these new techniques. I think it’s important for investigators and everyone else to not let fear drive you to do something you normally wouldn’t do, like click on questionable sites and emails. During the pandemic these hackers had preyed on the fear and started to improve their techniques with less obvious signs that it was a fake site (Minnaar, 2020, p. 32). Copying similar information from important websites like WHO and CDC cybercriminals were able to easily fool lots of people (Minnaar, 2020, p. 35). As I stated earlier, it is important that everyone is aware at ways to recognize the malicious software by doing things like asking for verification proof that someone is who they say they are and to always proceed with caution. Chances are the CDC won’t send you any personal emails and they won’t’ be asking you for money through the form of gift cards (Minnaar, 2020).
Minnaar, A. (2020). ‘Gone phishing’: the cynical and opportunistic exploitation of the coronavirus pandemic by cybercriminals. Acta Criminologica: African Journal of Criminology & Victimology, 33(3), 28–53. https://doi.org/10.10520/ejc-crim-v33-n3-a3
Taylor, R. W., Fritsch, E. J., Liederbach, J., Saylor, M. R., & Tafoya, W. L. (2019). Cyber crime and cyber terrorism. Pearson.