Equinox: The Science of Crime - Cybercops

Originally aired on Channel 4 (U.K.) on December 21, 2000. Y00E12 (235)

http://equinox.virtek.com/Equinox-Pro...

Equinox examines the shadowy world of hacking and the agencies who try to stop them, Viruses, and other cyber crimes.

Program Summary

Every two years, hundreds of computer hackers gather for a conference in New York, entitled HOPE, Hackers Of Planet Earth. Cyber outlaws range from thieves trying to extort money and pedophiles trying to gain access to children, to idealists championing the free flow of information and challenging the power of the multinationals. In amongst the hackers are law enforcement officers trained to fight cyber crime.

Their anonymity protected behind bizarre pseudonyms like The Cult of the Dead Cow and Sir Dystic, the stars of the hacking world compete and share 'tools' with participants to gain access to or destroy supposedly secure information. One of these tools was Back Orifice, which exposed the lack of security in Microsoft software.

But, say experts on both sides of the legal fence, the most common culprits are insiders with a grudge. The first aim of the hacker is to obtain a legitimate account. Insiders are a step ahead: they already have a legitimate password to gain access to the system. Once inside, they can compromise sensitive information then use it to steal or extort money, or destroy it in order to sabotage the work of the organization.

Cyber crime has moved law enforcement into new territory as officers try to track down the physical location of an individual who may be sitting in front of a screen half way across the world. One company, Bloomberg Business News, brought in the FBI when it received demands for money from computer hackers. Tracing the villains to Kazakhstan, the FBI managed to lure them to London where the British police could arrest them and begin proceedings to extradite them to the USA.

Not all computer crime requires a high level of expertise. In California, police uncover an operation for printing counterfeit checks and money, made simple by the accessibility of high-tech graphics equipment. One suspect says he has sold 10,000 fake bills in return for drugs. The same force logs on to a chat room and gets into conversation with a man who turns out to be a pedophile. Posing as a 12-year-old boy, the police officer arranges to meet the suspect, who turns out to be on probation for pedophile offences and HIV positive, with no intention of using any protection. He faces a 30-year sentence.

As increasing numbers of people use the Internet, the threats to welfare systems, to business and to society will swamp law enforcers, so individual users need to know enough to start to protect themselves.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2034957/