IC3 2010 Annual Report on Internet Crime Released

FAIRMONT, W.Va. — The 2010 Internet Crime Report was released today by the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). The report demonstrates how pervasive online crime has become, affecting people in all demographic groups throughout the country. In 2010, IC3 received 303,809 complaints of Internet crime, the second-highest total in IC3's 10-year history.

IC3 is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C). Since its creation in 2000, IC3 has received more than 2 million Internet crime complaints.

The 2010 Internet Crime Report provides specific details about various crimes, victims and perpetrators, as well as state-specific data. It also outlines how IC3 has adapted its methods to meet the needs of the public and law enforcement.

IC3 received and processed an average of 25,317 complaints per month in 2010. Non-delivery of payment or merchandise accounted for the most complaints (14.4 percent). Scams using the FBI's name (13.2 percent) and incidents of identity theft (9.8 percent) rounded out the top three types of complaints.

In 2010, IC3 referred nearly half of all complaints (121,710) to law enforcement for further investigation. New technology developed for IC3 allows investigators to collaborate on cases spanning jurisdictional boundaries. IC3 analysts also provide support for various investigative efforts.

“Internet crime has affected millions across the country, and the great thing about IC3 is that we have adapted our resources to meet this threat,” said NW3C Director Don Brackman. “We have implemented new tools to help law enforcement bring online criminals to justice.”

Gordon M. Snow, assistant director of the FBI's Cyber Division, added, “We encourage individuals to report Internet crime through the IC3 web portal. The IC3 is a unique resource for federal, state, and local law enforcement to intake cases efficiently, find patterns in what otherwise appear to be isolated incidents, combine multiple smaller crime reports into larger, higher priority cases, and ultimately bring criminals to justice.”

To download a copy of the 2010 Internet Crime Report, go to www.ic3.gov. NW3C has developed a companion website (ic3report.nw3c.org) for the 2010 report. The site features detailed information about Internet crime trends in all 50 states. It also includes resources for the public and for law enforcement.

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