2014 Symposium Posters

Project Members
Rachel Sitarz, Sam Liles

Cloud computing is an abstract term, which is often difficult for people to understand, yet most are moving to the cloud to store data. Criminal organizations are also utilizing the cloud of data storage, transmission, and communications, which led to the research question of, how are current criminal organizations structuring their criminal enterprises, and how does technology impact the structure? The current project is exploratory, making comparison of current criminal organizations with historical groups and maintains that those groups that are utilizing the cloud are no different than historical criminals. They simply are utilizing a new medium to facilitate their criminal activity. Criminal organizations have typically maintained a hierarchal and organizational structure. With the developments of technology, such as the cloud, groups are continuing to maintain enterprise structure, but allowing for geographically disparate transmission of data. This also leads to the potential problem of remote destruction of evidence, when Law Enforcement executes searches on a party or parties, within the organization. Criminals have taken to the technological advancements for many reasons, such as the anonymity factor, the expertise needed by law enforcement to apprehend criminals, and the ease of access. Technological advancements are often taken for granted, but is something that needs to be considered in the apprehension of criminals and the combat of criminal activity.