Some agencies track crimes based on the type of violation, not by how it occurred. Image: posteriori/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffResponsibility for identifying, investigating and prosecuting cybercrime is scattered across a dozen federal agencies, which further vary in how they collect and characterize information on such incidents, GAO has said, with one result being that cybercrime “is likely underreported.”
GAO’s report was ordered by last year’s Better Cybercrime Metrics Act, which aims to address problems including “difficulties obtaining and using digital evidence, gaps in the classification of crimes such as cybercrime, and the lack of comprehensive reporting.”
The report found various responsibilities regarding cybercrime fall under three components of DHS, six of Justice, two of Treasury and the Postal Inspection Service. Those agencies “use a variety of mechanisms to collect and report data on cybercrime (including cyber-enabled crime). The nature and use of these mechanisms generally depend on the mission and focus of the agencies,” it said.
While those agencies have means in place for sharing information, they are hampered by “the lack of a common definition of cybercrime or cyber-enabled crime, the variations in how and to what extent agencies collect these data, and the absence of a central repository for cybercrime data,” it said.
“Even to the extent that they are tracking similar crime data in their systems, agencies may not be identifying the same types of offenses as cybercrime or cyber-enabled crime,” it said. For example, it said, some agencies track crimes based on the type of violation, not by how it occurred.
The report did not make recommendations but noted that the Better Cybercrime Metrics Act requires Justice to develop a common set of definitions for types of cybercrime and cyber-enabled crime and to establish a category in its National Incident-Based Reporting System to collect reports for cybercrime from law enforcement.
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