![OJP letterhead](ojpletterhead.gif)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
Bureau of Justice
Statistics |
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2006 |
www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs |
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Contact: Stu Smith
202/307-0784 |
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After hours: 301-983-9354 |
NATIONAL COMPUTER SECURITY SURVEY ANNOUNCED
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Department of Justice (DOJ) today announced
plans to conduct the first-ever national survey to measure the prevalence
and impact of cybercrime on businesses within the United States.
The survey, conducted by DOJ's Bureau of Justice Statistics
(BJS) and the Department of Homeland Security's National Cyber
Security Division, will estimate the number of cyber attacks, frauds
and thefts of information and the resulting losses during 2005.
The survey, which will start this month and will be completed
by the end of the year, will provide critical information for businesses,
industry, government and other users to make more informed decisions
about how to target resources to fight cybercrime. The comprehensive
survey will collect information from a wide range of industry sectors
about:
- The nature and extent of computer security incidents.
- The monetary costs and other consequences of these occurrences.
- Incident details, such as types of offenders and reporting
to authorities.
- Computer security measures various firms use.
Cyber threats are a national issue that can be adequately addressed
only through cooperation among private firms, and federal, state
and local agencies. The President's National Strategy for
Securing Cyberspace calls for DOJ to develop better data about victims
of cybercrime and to track future changes.
Currently no national baseline measure exists on the extent of
cybercrime. The survey data will enable the federal government to
assess what needs to be done to reduce computer security vulnerabilities
and will provide the first official national statistics on the extent
and consequences of cybercrime among the country's 5.3 million
firms with salaried employees.
Almost three-fourths of businesses responding to a BJS pilot survey
said they had been victimized by cybercrime during 2001. Computer
virus infections were the most common form of attack (64 percent),
followed by denial of service incidents (25 percent) and vandalism
or sabotage (19 percent). Among the companies that detected a computer
virus, less than 6 percent said they notified a law enforcement
agency. Additional information about the new survey can be found
at: www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/survey/ncss/ncss.htm
The Office of Justice Programs (OJP) provides federal leadership
in developing the nation's capacity to prevent and control crime,
administer justice, and assist victims. OJP is headed by an Assistant
Attorney General and comprises five component bureaus and an office:
the Bureau of Justice Assistance; the Bureau of Justice Statistics;
the National Institute of Justice; the Office of Juvenile Justice
and Delinquency Prevention; and the Office for Victims of Crime,
as well as the Community Capacity Development Office, which incorporates
the Weed and Seed strategy and OJP's American Indian and Alaska
Native Affairs Desk. More information can be found at www.ojp.usdoj.gov.
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