Cyber Crime and Cyber Terrorism

CHAPTER
31
4
Police investigation 
processes: practical 
tools and techniques for 
tackling cyber crimes
Andrew Staniforth
INTRODUCTION
The Internet has brought, and will continue to bring, huge benefits to industry, in-
dividual citizens and their communities around the world. Unfortunately, there are 
a small but increasing minority of people who seek to exploit new opportunities for 
their chosen criminal purpose. Cyber criminals are quick to spot the potential vul-
nerabilities of new technologies and use them to commit offences, or try to frustrate 
detection of their activities (HM 
Government, 2011
). Cyber crime and cyber terror-
ism is no longer about those who simply seek to access computer systems to prove it 
can be done. Cyber threats are real and damaging. The criminals and terrorists behind 
contemporary cyber threats to society are well organized, and seek to take advantage 
of those using Internet services. Whether this is for financial gain, in pursuance of 
extremist ideologies or as threats to children, the impact on the victims can be dev-
astating. The most vulnerable members of our society are all too often the victims 
of cyber crimes—from young people threatened by bullying or sexual predators, to 
the elderly who provide easy prey for organized fraudsters (HM 
Government, 2010
).
To tackle the phenomenon of cyber crime and cyber terrorism, governments 
across the world have invested substantial resources in homeland security, resulting 
in significant law enforcement and intelligence agency responses to online threats. 
Designed to detect, deter and disrupt all manner of cyber-related hazards, new cyber 
policing units have been rapidly established to investigate cyber crimes (
Awan and 
Blakemore, 2012
). Such investment fulfils the first duty of governments to protect 
the security and safety of their country, citizens and their wider interests. The focus 
and investments made to tackle cyber crime and cyber terrorism are welcomed but no 
one in authority can afford to be complacent. The threat from cyber crime and cyber 
terrorism is constantly evolving—with new opportunities to commit “old” crimes 
in new ways as well as high-tech crimes which did not exist several years ago (HM 
Government, 2011
). Cyber criminals are becoming more sophisticated, and they 
continue to develop malicious software and devise improved methods for infecting 

---