Understanding Global Crime-End-term Notes

Case Studies:
Volkswagen Scandel:
- Volkswagen rigged 11 million cars to work around the emissions standard world-
wide.
- Made defeat devices to escape the emission standards. It looked like they are not
releasing any pollutants, but they were releasing nitrogen and other pollutants. The
device would detect when environment tests were being done- would burn more fuel
so the device would emit less gases and then when the car was normally being driven
his device would turn off and release pollutants in the air.
- The car was able to detect its begin tested through a sophisticated system of detection
and making the emissions intentional and not accidental.
- The emissions were 40 times higher than the legal limit.
- The cars have lost their value and customers filed lawsuits seeking compensation.
- Fund was set up to compensate owners- Michael horn the ceo of Volkswagen amercia
took full responsibility and stepped down.
Nike Labor exploitation:
- Labor lived in small and poor conditions without air conditioning. They were given
poor wages-open sewage right behind their house with pollutants. Rats and
cockroaches near food.
- Workers would have to share washrooms, kitchens and laundry space with 5-10
families. Dollar 25 a day- 7000 Indonesian rupia a day after rent everything- which
bought 2 meals, some detergent, iced tea and peanuts that’s it.
- The researcher fell sick every day on such conditions- it was not possible to maintain
human dignity in such a manner.
- To buy one razor and one cream- three meals had to be left. Those workers had
nothing but their physical labor and that too was exploited by giving them such
conditions to live in.
- They were working over 10 hours just to get by- women would not see their children
or the children would not even go to schools because there was just no money.
- There was pollution caused by the rubber that was used in Nike designs by burning
them in the sweatshops waste areas which would harm these workers and nearby
areas they lived in.
- Labor was threatened not to speak to the researchers.
- Child labour in Bangladesh factories of nike. Forced labour in cotton industry
( Uighur camps) – they are stripped of their identity and their cultures.
- There is modern slavery- human trafficking- through supposed “aid” groups. Ads are
selling uighurs for work. Many companies advertised that orders could be placed with
them for people aged 16-18 and there is a minimun order limit 100 etc and they would
be delivered with 7-15 days.

Theranos Scandal:
- Pin-prick blood testing technology claim which would be used to perform 100 tests
instead of one whole vial of blood traditionally needed for lab tests. - this was
automated.- started by Stanford dropout Elizabeth Holmes.
- The start up picked up a lot and raised 700 m in investment- problem? the technology
didn’t work.
- The suspicion was raised after john carreyrou was tipped and interested in how
holmes was able to create the tech after just 2 sems of chemical enginerring at
Stanford- he broke the story in 2015.
 - People within the organization revealed the truth about the tech to john- the tch failed
quality assurance the results sent to patients were fundamentally incorrect upon which
many people took life changing medical decisions- it was all lies.
- Theranos was not even using its own tech which failed, to conduct the tests. Theranos
was sued and FDa inevstigations howed john’s report to be true.
- Holmes stepped down later after denying the claims and was charged with criminal
fraud along with company president. She was chared with more things such as
falsifying test results later.
World com:

- WorldCom was a telecommunications company that was established in 1983 by

Murray Waldron, William Rector, and early investor Bernard Ebbers among others.
- WorldCom was in financial trouble and used questionable accounting techniques to
hide its losses from investors and others.
- Telecom company- part of the largest accounting scandals which came on the heel of
enron and tyco frauds- the company cooked its books. After this company came out of
bankruptcy it rebarded and sold its network assets to Verizon.
- Bernie Ebbers, scott Sullivan and Arthur Anderson- company’s auditing firm.
State Crime- Genocide by John Packer

 Individual accountability misunderstands the basic nature of genocide. The state must
take accountability for e.g. Israel, Myanmar.
 The genocide convention us where breach engages state responsibility.
 State is a uniquely powerful actor with sovereign powers to make policy and law.
Genocide is not a composite of individually committed acts. Although individuals can
commit certain genocide acts. Point is some acts cannot be committed by individuals
for example- citizenship and Rohingya Muslims.
 Myanmar soldiers are not gang/militia- they coordinate action by giving commands
and hence state is responsible for the same.
 - many women were rapes- forcibly impregnated with the idea to break in part the
Rohingya as a group, as a ethnic community.
 The Myanmar state commissioned these acts otherwise it would not be possible at the
scale.
 The ICJ is one forum for action- opens international dialogue, causes states to rethink
their reputation for foreign investors and business in case a binding judgement is
pronounced. ICJ judgements are generally respected.
 Actions that would become available: Court provisional measures, Myanmar would
be obligated to respond. Failure to do so would have further consequences.
 Reparations such as Rohingya’s would be able to return home, seek restitution of their
property and compensation for their injuries- all this can happen if the state is held
accountable and not just the individuals who may have enabled such genocide to take
place.

Cyber Crime-

Reading 2: Crime in the age of technology- Europol

 Organized crime groups have advanced due to technology available to them. They
adapt and integrate to build brand new business models around them.
 o Eg: expansion of trade, widespread availability of encrypted communication
channels
o more technological innovation such as accessible and cheaper drone tech and
advanced printing technologies.
 Internet can facilitate or assist criminality across. Internet is source of information
which can assist criminals in carrying out their crimes. For eg- shipping routes,
recipes for drugs or explosives etc.
 Cybercrime: borderless phenomenon- the attacks grow as the society becomes
increasingly digitalized. The potential impact of the attack is also greater. Such
activities involve ransomware, malware, fraud (non-cash) and online trade in child
sexual exploitation.
 Cyber Dependent crime: crimes which can only be committed using computers,
computer network, other forms of information communication technology.
o Without internet these crimes cannot be committed.
o Activities such as creation and spread of malware, hacking to steal sensitive
data and denial of service attacks to cause reputational damage.
o Development of malware remains the top but ransomware has really picked
up- notpetya attack,
o Challenges are unlawful access to/disclosure of data or intellectual property.
o Tech can create new opportunities for cybercriminals.
 Cyber-Facilitated Crime: can be conducted online or offline.
o Internet increases the scale, geographic scope and speed of the crimes.
o Online child sexual exploitation- recorded, shared distributed, encouraged.
o Internet provides anonymity where targets are easy to find. P2P sharing and all
other developments may have assisted in facilitating the crime.
 Fraud (non-cash)- highly advanced and constantly evolving to adapt to industry
measures.
 Technology provides new methods for intrusion into ATMs and similar systems. Such
tech tools have given ways to access vehicles and overcome security measures.
 Online trade in illicit goods:
o Growth of online platforms has been mirrored in illicit goods and services as
criminals seek to increase their business opportunity. Online illicit markets on
surface web and dark ner provide opportunity to sell all kinds of illicit
commodities .eg. fake documents, cybercrime tools.
o Drugs market online is the largest criminal market. Alpha bay accounted for
68% of all online drug listings on the darknet.
o Infringements of IPR. Counterfeit products are sold with genuine products.
o Compromised data is sued for fraud. Even normal protected data can leave
traces with can be used to commit fraud or some sort of crime.
o Firearms are increasingly traded on online platforms including he darknet
marketplaces. Even those who have no connection to these organized crime
groups can access such spaces to procure firearms. Increasing terrorist attacks
is a worrying trend.
 Communications technology:
o Internet services mobile phones serve as fully functional computers which the
criminals can get hold of to contact or communicate and commit a crime. Eg.
Phishing campaigns- social media for child abuse and grooming
 o In fact, criminals have started to transition into secure apps and other services.
These apps have a brand name and are popular amongst general populace. As
many devices offer end to end encryption, they are considered reliable by the
criminals for secure communications. Example, Telegram or WhatsApp. This
creates challenges because it renders traditional techniques such as
wiretapping in-effective.
o Encryption is important for private citizens and industries t protect their data
however the use of legitimate anonymity and encryption services by criminals
and malicious actors pose an impediment to detection, investigation and crime.
Pertinent in all crimes including terrorism.
 Criminal Finances and Money laundering:
o The shift to online solutions for most financial services provided For the
legitimate economy has benefitted criminal finance. Cryptocurrencies,
payment platforms have facilitated the ways of financing crimes and
criminals.
o The rapid process of transactions across jurisdictions and proliferation of
encryption and anonymity poses a challenge for financial investigations.
o Crypto has become one of the major sources of financial crime. It is used on
the dark net to purchase, its used underground, for ransom demands, for
extortion, wiretapping etc.
 Industrialization and manufacturing advancement:
o the drugs market remains one of the most benefitted from the availability of
technology associated with manufacturing and industrialization.
o Drugs market remains the largest criminal market in EU- 45% of criminal
activity groups are engaged in drug production. Trafficking or distribution.
Such tech helps maximize production output.
o Cannabis cultivation sites are often maintained using professional growing
equipment such as climate control systems. CO2 and ozone generators.
o Labs have increasing available chemicals and technologies with them to
synthesize any drug they want and produce it on a mass scale.
o Drug production remains a key problem in Eu and has only become more
serious since the shift to online platforms used to trade these illicit drugs.
o Those crimes that involve manufacturing such as commodities have also
benefitted from industrialization and manufacturing tech advancements. The
quality of counterfeit products is unparallel so much so many times they seem
better than the original legally produced material.
o 3D printing- potential for criminal abuse- ceramics- plastic and metals- even
firearms to some extent. Such tech is used to make parts of ATMs. Criminals
can make any custom components required for any illicit purpose.
 Drone Technology:
o Low profile mechanism of transporting and delivering illicit goods has
increased with drone technology. With more advancements in drone tech-
such as more travel distance and ability to carry heavier loafs- criminal groups
involved in drug trafficking have invested in them to avoid checks at borders,
ports and airports.
o They also serve as a counter surveillance and booby traps by criminals.

 Law Enforcement Response:

 o Challenge is to keep up with the pace of tech development and its use in
crime.
o Other challenges that cybercrime pose for law enforcement:
 Attribution- who is behind an attack.
 Specific knowledge to understand types of cybercrime- more experts
are needed to understand, use cutting edge investigation tool and
forensic tools.
o Law enforcement must adopt tech- it can help locate criminals- there can be
increased surveillance. - AI can eld in predicting malware, or process big
amounts of data.
o There is naturally a resource implication- adequate training may have to be
given to capitalize on the technology.
o Many challenges lie also with the regulators and policy markers- encryption,
use of drones etc.

o Emerging technology fields such the Internet of Things (IoT) for example,
have resulted in the creation of new legal, policy and regulatory challenges,
and demand cooperation between different sectors as well as different
stakeholders. In such discussions, it is essential for law enforcement to have a
voice, and to provide guidance and recommendations regarding the needs and
requirements of law enforcement.
o Combatting crime is not law enforcement’s job alone. There has to be a
working relationship with private sector and academia. These spaces have
access to technology and knowledge that is unavailable to law enforcement.
These industries are enthusiastic about helping especially when it affects their
industry. – Eurpol’s global airport action days whuich targets fraudsters
travelling on tickers using compromised payment cards.
o Prevention is a key non-investigative measure. Lack of knowledge or
information about potential threats from various technologies often leaves
potential victims vulnerable to more tech-savvy criminals.
o Awareness and education can have significant impact on the success of the
malicious actors.
o Technology will continue to expand and adapt- it is essential that law
enforcement continues to use all the resources, tools, and opportunities at its
disposal.
o Public-private partnerships, the development of innovative technical solutions,
prevention measures, and training and capacity building are all required in
order for law enforcement to remain an effective countermeasure to crime in
the age of technology.

Difference between the terms Transnational and international:

Transnational:

o The United Nations (UN) defined transnational crime as offences “whose inception,
perpetration and/or direct or indirect effects involve more than one country”.
o It expands beyond the borders of one country into another. Its organisation is spread
across and not centralised.
 o Usually involves an organised crime groups with activities in more than one state and
has effects that transcend the boundaries of the state its committed in.
o Transnational crimes therefore involve offences that cross international borders or
which affect the interests of more than one state.

International:

offending that is recognised in international law and against the world community

Examples of international criminal offences that are subject to prosecution are those that
threaten world order and security, crimes against humanity and fundamental, human rights,
war crimes, and
genocide

state-corporate crime:

- State-corporate crime involves at least two entities (public and private) and is
described by Michalowski and Kramer as “illegal or socially injurious actions that
result froma mutually-reinforcing interaction between 1) policies and/or practices in
pursuit of the goals of one or more institutions of political governance, and 2) policies
and/or practices in pursuit of the goals of one or more institutions of economic
production and distribution”

State initiated: State-initiated corporate crime refers to socially injurious actions that result
from corporate entities working at the behest of (or with the tacit approval of) governmental
organizations.

State facilitated: the failure of governmental authorities to create meaningful regulatory or

enforcement mechanisms concerning organizational malfeasance

Edwin Sutherland defined White Collar Crime as: Crime which is committed by a person
who is having high social status and also having respectability which is acquired by him in
the course of his occupation.