Internet-related crime, like any other crime, should be reported to appropriate law enforcement investigative authorities at the local, state, federal, or international levels, depending on the scope of the crime. Citizens who are aware of federal crimes should report them to local offices of federal law enforcement.
The primary federal law enforcement agencies that investigate domestic crime on the Internet include: the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the United States Secret Service, the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) , the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) . Each of these agencies has offices conveniently located in every state to which crimes may be reported. Contact information regarding these local offices may be found in local telephone directories. In general, federal crime may be reported to the local office of an appropriate law enforcement agency by a telephone call and by requesting the "Duty Complaint Agent."
Each law enforcement agency also has a headquarters (HQ) in Washington, D.C., which has agents who specialize in particular areas. For example, the FBI and the U.S. Secret Service both have headquarters-based specialists in computer intrusion (i.e., computer hacker) cases.
To determine some of the federal investigative law enforcement agencies that may be appropriate for reporting certain kinds of crime, please refer to the following table:
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| Computer intrusion (i.e. hacking) | |
| Password trafficking | |
| Counterfeiting of currency | |
| Child Pornography or Exploitation | |
| Child Exploitation and Internet Fraud matters that have a mail nexus | |
| Internet fraud and SPAM |
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| Internet harassment | |
| Internet bomb threats | |
| Trafficking in explosive or incendiary devices or firearms over the Internet |
The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C). IC3's mission is to serve as a vehicle to receive, develop, and refer criminal complaints regarding the rapidly expanding arena of cyber crime. The IC3 gives the victims of cyber crime a convenient and easy-to-use reporting mechanism that alerts authorities of suspected criminal or civil violations. For law enforcement and regulatory agencies at the federal, state, and local level, IC3 provides a central referral mechanism for complaints involving Internet related crimes.
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| Copyright piracy (e.g., software, movie, sound recordings) | |
| Trademark counterfeiting | |
| Theft of trade secrets |
This guide is contained in Appendix C of the Report of the Department of Justice's Intellectual Property Task Force (October 2004) (PDF). The guide also contains the following checklists for reporting intellectual property crime to law enforcement:
The stopfakes.gov website provides information to consumers and businesses on intellectual property, including information on how to report trade in fake goods.
The IPR Coordination Center's responsibilities include:
Those with specific information regarding intellectual property crime can submit an IPR Coordination Center Complaint Referral Form.