Investigating cybercrimes involves many challenges due to their scope, international nature and developing technology. According to the police, approximately only 10 percent of online scams come to the attention of the authorities.
- A large proportion of online scams never come to the attention of the authorities.
- A quick report of a crime makes it easier to track down criminals.
- The new police unit to be established in 2024 will enhance the fight against online crime.
The number of different types of online fraud continues to grow. Europol has estimated that several million Europeans are already targeted by online fraudsters every day.
– This illustrates the seriousness and spread of the phenomenon, police inspector of the National Police Board Mikko Kiiski says Iltalehte.
Kiiski believes that this is not a passing phenomenon, but an established way of committing crime.
– This estimate can already be approached, for example, through digitization. The significance will grow even more in the future, and therefore attention must be paid to combating the phenomenon, Kiiski tells Iltalehte.
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Reporting a crime helps the police
Kiiski points out that online scams are largely about hidden crime.
– Based on some estimates, only about 10 percent of total crime comes to the attention of the authorities.
In addition, banks and telecom operators prevent numerous scams on their own and in cooperation with the police. However, according to Kiiske, official statistics are not recorded in practice.
Kiiski encourages victims of online scams to always file a criminal complaint. Only in this way will the crime be reported to the police and the crime situation will improve.
Scams are often extensive and global
According to Kiiske, the most typical methods are linked to investment fraud and love and CEO scams. Information is also actively fished in the name of banks, tax authorities and Kela.
Read more about different current types of scams in this article.
Kiiski himself has participated in the fight against and investigation of serious computer-aided crimes.
– In practice, the preliminary investigation aims to find information, facts or evidence that connects some devices or, for example, money, and thus the person to the crime, he says.
According to Kiiski, the extent and global nature of online scams is reflected in the fact that at the beginning of the investigation, it is often necessary to determine a suitable prosecution forum.
– Let’s find out where it would be most appropriate to bring the case to criminal proceedings, he explains.
– Even if the victim is in Finland, for example, Finland is not automatically the best prosecution forum in the case.
Are some nationalities highlighted in the perpetrators of cybercrimes?
According to Kiiski, there is no precise research or statistical information about the nationalities of online fraudsters. On a general level, according to him, it is a global phenomenon.
– Having confirmed that, I can tell you that Finns are also involved in criminal cases in the position of being suspected of a crime.
Whether it is the perpetrator of the actual online fraud or, for example, the entity receiving funds obtained through crime, varies.
– In my opinion, no citizenship is overemphasized in the implementation of online scams.
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Online scams are largely about hidden crime. Jenni Gästgivar
Scam sites on Moldovan servers
Kiiski says that the investigation of online scams typically requires extensive expertise, international cooperation and information exchange.
He gives an example of an efficient and effective computer network-assisted fight against serious crime and the investigation of the crime scene. The case was sentenced this year. The skein connected to the wider criminal phenomenonin connection with which Finns have lost millions of euros in recent years.
The investigation had been carried out for years, but finally the police had managed to locate the servers that contained the fake banking websites used for online banking scams. The servers were mostly located in Moldova.
– Through this, we got access to the evidence through which the crimes were carried out, Kiiski clarifies.
In the case in question, the victims had been made to visit a fake website resembling S-bank’s online bank by sending a link via text message. The text messages were made in such a way that they looked like they were sent by the bank.
The police found out that the same factor was connected to several network-assisted bank frauds in different parts of Finland.
– The same young man was also involved in money laundering crimes reported in the capital region, where the predicate crimes were bank fraud, team leader of the cybercrime investigation team of the Southwest Finland Police Department, criminal police constable Jami Toivonen stated in the bulletin in summer.
A slow response can make the investigation difficult
Kiiski says that the earlier the police become aware of an online scam, the better.
– Then the evidence does not have time to disappear from the network, and there are better conditions for the investigation and the investigation of crimes.
Although in the most serious acts, the planning and personal skills of the perpetrator are often emphasized, not all criminals are professionals in criminal activity.
– As in all activities, there is always a risk of mistakes, and this often enables the police to track down the perpetrator or perpetrators.
– This requires the police to do it systematically and know how, but the police have good experience in solving this type of crime, says Kiiski.
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Not all criminals are professionals in criminal activity. Adobe Stock
Reduce risk
Kiiski warns in particular about phishing, the goal of which is to gain access to the victim’s online banking or payment instrument credentials.
He reminds us of the guidelines by which the risk of becoming a victim of such crimes can be significantly reduced:
- Do not log in with your online banking credentials via links, but use the bank’s mobile application, for example.
- Invest through your own bank. Keep the credentials of the virtual currency service provider and wallet strictly to yourself.
- No security accounts exist. The bank or the police will never ask you by phone or otherwise to transfer your funds to another account.
- If your loved one asks you for money or related information, make sure by calling.
Read more about protection against scams in this article.
The new unit will facilitate the fight against cybercrime
The police has been intensifying the prevention and investigation of cybercrimes for several years.
A concrete step forward in the investigation will be taken in 2024, when a unit will be established in the police force focused on the fight against and investigation of computer-aided crime.
– This also aims to systematize the process from the victim’s point of view and enable the prevention and investigation of crimes even more efficiently.
Kiiski does not want to go into more detail about the challenges brought by artificial intelligence or its utilization in crime prevention.
– This is related to the performance of the police and investigative tactics and technical issues, so I will not take a more detailed position.
On a general level, he states that the growing importance of artificial intelligence has been taken into account in the police.
– From this point of view and in terms of online scams and crime, there have been opportunities as well as threats, says Kiiski.