Gang-related cyber and computer crimes: Legal aspects and practical points of consideration in investigations

Abstract

Gang-related criminal activity has become increasingly more sophisticated, taking advantage of technological advancements that have occurred during the past few decades. Among these advances, criminal gangs have begun to use the internet as an effective tool through which criminal activity can be conducted. Investigators must be adept and competent at locating and collecting gang-related evidence from the internet and from various electronic storage devices. Various techniques of investigation, the legal statutes associated with these types of investigations, and the legal parameters and limits when conducting these investigations are discussed.

Keywords:

• cyber crime
• gangs online
• computer investigation

Notes

P. Thomas, J. Date and N. Venkataraman, Mean streets: Gangs going digital. February 19, 2007. http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=2886482&page=1.

V. Dominguez, Greeley gang members post videos online. Greeley Gazette, April 18, 2011. Retrieved from: http://www.greeleygazette.com/press/?p=8774.

M. Graham, Gang members indicted in online prostitution ring. Reuters US Edition, April 18, 2011. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/19/us-prostitution-online-idUSTRE73I06J20110419.

G.W. Knox, Gang Members on Facebook: Should We Look the Other Way? (Chicago, IL: National Gang Crime Research Center, 2011).

M. O'Deane, Combating gangsters online. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, 80, no. 4 (2011), 1–9.

National Institute of Justice, Investigations Involving the Internet and Computer Networks (Washington, DC: United States Department of Justice, 2007).

United States Secret Service, Best Practices for Seizing Electronic Evidence: A Pocket Guide for First Responders (Washington, DC: United States Department of Homeland Security, 2010).

National Institute of Justice, Digital Evidence in the Courtroom: A Guide for Law Enforcement and Prosecutors (Washington, DC: United States Department of Justice, 2007).

R.V. Del Carmen, Criminal procedure: Law and Practice, 8th ed. (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2010).