Like a little white lie that is the of cause another little harmless fib, a harmless fib that becomes a fabricated story, and so on. The same domino effect can be found in the act of committing a crime. Computer Crime is defined as any crime that is committed by means of the special knowledge or expert use of computer technology. Criminal activity directly related to the use of computers, specifically illegal trespass into the computer system or database of another, manipulation or theft of stored or on-line data, or sabotage of equipment and data (The American Heritage 1). Since the first reported case of computer abuse in 1958, computers have been involved in most types of crimes, including theft, burglary, larceny, fraud, embezzlement, extortion, sabotage, espionage, kidnapping, and murder (Britannica.com 1). .

             Computer systems themselves can be the targets of attack, as when a computer virus is introduced into a system destroy data. Computer crime is an increasing problem in The United States and all over the world. The public has become so dependant on computers, as a result we can see how our nation, along with others, went into a frenzy when the "Y2K Bug" became a potential threat. Due to the introduction of modems in the 1960's (Britannica.com 1) breaking into private computer systems is now even more easily accomplished. "We simply don't know [how big the problem is]. We do know that computer crime costs industry and society billions of dollars every year" (qtd. Deputy Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr. 2). .

             Someone who uses their expertise to break and tamper with computer systems as a hobby are referred to as "Hackers". .

             But other than the motive being a hobby, some use their abilities for personal gain. "This category includes those crimes that we in law enforcement have been fighting in the physical world but now we are seeing with increasing frequency on the Internet.