Law Enforcement and the Internet
A New and Powerful Resource For Law Enforcement Agencies
by Michael R. Anderson
The Internet - Friend or Foe? This question plagues law enforcement agencies on a daily basis. Some individuals in our society view the Internet as the electronic equivalent to the skid row back alleys of the 90's. They see it as a place where sexual perverts prey on children - where international terrorists share their bomb making secrets - where pornography is readily available - and as an electronic corridor used by hackers to penetrate corporate and government computers. Others see the Internet as a powerful educational tool that has the potential of providing a wealth of information on just about any topic. They see electronic E-mail as the communications bridge between varied cultures and as an economical way to share information with friends and associates world wide. Which group has the right view? The truth is that both groups have valid points of view. One thing is very clear though. The Internet is here to stay and it plays an important role in government, business and international commerce.
Computer technology has moved at a fast pace over the last ten years. Technological advancements have brought the price of powerful portable computers easily within the reach of most budgets. By way of example, the notebook computer used to write this article has more computing power than the computers that helped put the first man on the moon. According to a recent survey, 37% of all homes in the United States now have a computer and law enforcement agencies are rapidly becoming computerized as well.
In the past, law enforcement agencies have been slow to computerize. This was primarily due to limited government budgets and the lack of a clear cut need to make changes to existing manual record keeping systems. However, times have changes and most law enforcement agencies have computerized and the rest are rapidly moving in that direction. Notebook computers have found their way into squad cars and have proven to be a great tool for report writing. The more advanced law enforcement agencies even rely upon wireless communication and the Internet to transfer reports from the field to headquarters. Computers have also proven to be valuable tools in the cataloging of evidence found at crime scenes and raid sites. They also make easy work of managing law enforcement evidence rooms. In some departments computers are used to facilitate inter-department communications via E-mail and the most progressive law enforcement agencies have created Internet web sites to promote public relations. Some of the best law enforcement Internet web sites can be found at http://www.leolinks.com. However, law enforcement use of the Internet is not yet the norm and many law enforcement executives are considering for the first time how the Internet might fit into the needs of their agencies.
E-mail and other Internet features certainly have the potential to maximize the efficiency of a law enforcement agency. The catch is that some departments are hung up on whether or not potential problems outweigh potential benefits. After all.... the Internet was never intended to be secure and the perception is that a low life or pervert is hiding under every 'cyber rock'. Is this really a place to conduct law enforcement business? Some believe that the answer is a definite YES because the potential benefits far outweigh the negatives. However, caution should not be thrown to the wind. As with anything else that is new, proper planning and research is essential for success. Law enforcement use of the Internet is no exception.
With the possible exception of an agency wide computer network, Internet E-mail is the fastest, easiest and most cost effective means of sharing law enforcement communications. The click of a mouse button can initiate the broadcast of E-mail messages to one or more individuals within an agency or to individuals in other law enforcement agencies. If the information is sensitive, it doesn't take much extra effort to encrypt the sensitive information and attach it to an E-mail message. As long as the recipient of the message knows the password and has the ability to receive E-mail attachments, a high degree of law enforcement security can be maintained.
It is unfortunate but file encryption has proven to be a mixed blessing for law enforcement agencies over the last several years. In some cases the 'crooks' have used encryption to block law enforcement access to their communications and computer files. As a result, dealing with encrypted files has become a serious cause of hair pulling by law enforcement computer specialists. However, not everything about encryption is bad. The same technology can be used by law enforcement agencies to keep 'law enforcement secrets' away from the criminal element. It has worked well for the military and corporations. It should certainly work just as well for law enforcement agencies.
Military strength file encryption software is available for government and corporate computer users from a variety of commercial sources. Regarding the encryption of E-mail attachments, the recipient doesn't even have to have a copy of the encryption program because the sender can send the encrypted attachment in the form of a small program to be run by the recipient. The only thing that is needed to decipher the information contained in the attachment is the correct password and the ability of the recipient to receive binary attachments via E-mail. By using Internet E-mail in this fashion, law enforcement officials can easily and securely communicate using state-of-the-art technology.
Internet web pages are starting to become more popular in law enforcement circles. They can be used to share crime prevention information and other law enforcement communications with the public. Furthermore, the mere existence of a law enforcement Internet web site sends a clear signal to the public that the law enforcement agency involved is modern and technology aware. Most law enforcement computer evidence specialists have the necessary tools to create Internet web pages and the cost of maintaining a site is just a few dollars a month. Some Internet service providers even provide free web space as part of their services for Internet E-mail clients. Cost should no longer be an issue for law enforcement agencies and progressive law enforcement managers have already started thinking about ways to use this new technology to their benefit.
Before intelligent decisions can be made regarding the merits of using law enforcement E-mail and Internet public relations, some areas of confusion need to be clarified. Many computer users don't fully understand the differences between Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and On-line computer services such as CompuServe and America On Line. The differences are quite distinct and each has its advantages and disadvantages that provide good food for thought to law enforcement management who might be involved in the decision making process.
An ISP essentially provides a connection or link to the Internet. The computer user normally connects to the ISP using a modem over a local or toll free phone line. No frills or fancy features......just the connection. Some of these providers of service are small one man businesses that may or may not have good physical security at their computer sites. Some operate without any reliable level of computer security and leave security issues up to the user. However, ISPs usually offer the best price and in some cities such services can even be obtained free of charge. Over the last year several national ISPs have even made E-mail services available free of charge. Some of these services have potential uses for law enforcement uses, however you have to be sure that E-mail attachments are allowed with the free services. Absent this feature, encrypted word processing files cannot be attached to E-mail messages. Without this capability, security concerns are created. Law enforcement computer users interested in free Internet accounts can check out: http://www.hotmail.com, http://www.yahoomail.com or http://www.juno.com. As of this writing, Juno did not allow E-mail attachments. A small price comes with free E-mail accounts. Generally you are captive to advertising messages. Also, some of these E-mail accounts don't provide spell checkers and other common features such as filters.
A security tour of the ISPs computer facility is normally the recommended first step in the decision making process for a law enforcement agency. Background checks of the owners and key employees, might also be in order. If the facility doubles as the headquarters for the local thugs, it might be wise to move on to the next ISP. Many times a local ISP will also make an Internet web site available free of charge to law enforcement agencies that have purchased E-mail services. Such web pages are easily created by using any one of the popular word processing programs that have HTML export capabilities. More sophisticated programs are available for under $100. Feel free to contact me via E-mail, if you need help. We are connected to some excellent resources when it comes to Internet web design.
On-line services are essentially huge computer networks of diverse computer users. These networks are self contained but also provide Internet connectivity. As with the ISPs, these services are also accessed by computer users through the use of modems connected to local or toll free long distance telephone lines. However, because of the nature of these large networks there is a substantial security layer between the end user and the Internet. On-line services are owned and managed by huge corporations that are security oriented. This can be a real plus if physical security of the computer network is a concern.
I like to make comparisons with television cable service providers when describing On-line service companies like CompuServe and America On Line. Cable companies provide direct access to local television channels as well as to their own special channels and featured promotions like HBO and Show Time. In a similar fashion, On-line services give you access to the Internet but they also give users access to specialized forums and other member services. Law enforcement forums on CompuServe include the Police Forum, Safety Net Forum and the Time Warner Crime Forum, to mention just a few that are frequented by law enforcement computer users. However, just like a cable service, add-ons can run up the cost depending on the forum involved and the duration of access time.
Although a higher degree of security is provided with an On-line service, don't get the mistaken impression that security is not a concern. Any E-mail messages routed over the Internet from an On-line service are insecure and file attachments can be a problem depending on the on-line service involved and how they treat file attachments. As a result, file encryption may not be a viable security option. Another factor that must be considered: On-line services do not normally provide law enforcement agencies with the ability to have their own Internet web sites. Therefore, consideration might be given to using a combination of services. Its just a thought.
As you can see, there are some decisions to be made and those decisions are based primarily upon the needs of the law enforcement agency involved. There are many good ISPs to choose from and there also some excellent On-line service providers. They all provide world wide E-mail capabilities with varying degrees of computer security and user features. Defining the technology needs of the law enforcement agency is a good first step in the decision making process. Also, the expertise of the agency computer crime unit should be sought. Usually such computer crime specialists are experienced and well trained regarding such issues. If they don't have the answers, they will have access to other computer specialists who do. Good law enforcement resources regarding Internet issues, exist through Search Group and IACIS. Consideration might also be given to seeking the advice of law enforcement agencies that are already using the Internet. As indicated previously, some of the best law enforcement web sites are listed at www.leolinks.com. Other law enforcement Internet sites can be found at http://dir.yahoo.com/Society_and_Culture/Crime/Law_Enforcement/ and also at www.officer.com. You might want to check out some of these sites. They are excellent and I am confident that theses agencies are willing to share their experience with other law enforcement agencies.
