By Reuters
Special to CNET News.com

 
Louis Freeh

WASHINGTON--The number of cybercrimes being investigated by the FBI has doubled in the past year, and last month's attacks on leading Web sites are the tip of the iceberg, FBI director Louis Freeh said today.

  Addressing a Senate subcommittee of cybercrime, Freeh suggested changes to the law that would help track down cybercriminals and make it easier to keep pace with the fastest-growing area of crime in the United States.

In 1998, Freeh said the FBI opened 547 "computer intrusion" cases, and this more than doubled to 1,154 last year. In 1998, the FBI closed 399 of those cases and 912 last year.

"In short, even though we have markedly improved our capabilities to fight cyberintrusions, the problem is growing even faster," he told the committee.

Cyberthreats included disgruntled employees, hackers who "cracked" into networks for the thrill of it or for financial gain, and virus writers.

Criminal groups and terrorist organizations also used technology more to raise funds, spread propaganda and communicate with each other.

Freeh declined to give details of the attacks last month on business Web sites such as Yahoo, eBay and Amazon.com, as these are under investigation. But he said the attacks were "the tip of the iceberg" and demonstrated the ease with which such crimes could be committed.

Freeh said U.S. laws have not kept pace with fast-changing technology, adding that the FBI is working with the Justice Department to propose a legislative package to update laws.

Responding to his comments, Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer from New York said laws are set up at a "sub-sonic" speed at a time when the process should be faster than the speed of light.

Freeh said he does not want "extraordinary powers," just enough to deal with the phenomenal changes that have accompanied the Internet.

One problem is that to track down a cybercriminal, court orders often have to be issued in several states. "There is a needless waste of time and resources, and a number of important investigations are either hampered or derailed entirely in those instances," Freeh said.

The use of administrative subpoenas would enable investigators to work more efficiently, he said.

Senators on the committee said some companies are reluctant to report cybercrimes for fear of harming their stock prices.

The president of the Information Technology Association of America, Harris Miller, told the committee that few high-tech firms are interested in being seen by customers as active law enforcement agents.

"No company wants information to surface that they have given in confidence that may jeopardize their market position, strategies, customer base or capital investments," he said.

Asked about the cooperation of foreign governments, Freeh cited the United States' close relationship with Canada. A couple of weeks ago, Freeh said an FBI office in New Haven picked up an online statement from a youth who said he felt like "shooting up a school."

A 14-year-old in a small Canadian town was tracked down and found to have access to explosives and other weaponry.

Over the New Year's period, Freeh said he had close contact with Far East and Middle Eastern countries and that FBI agents there had been given access to computers and hard drives to investigate threats against Americans.

Freeh said that he visited six areas in the Gulf recently, and all mentioned cybercrime. "The Internet has no boundaries or sovereignty," he said.

Story Copyright © 2000 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved

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