Havocscope Black Market - Statistics, Data and Crime News

Internet Fraud losses in 2009

havocscope — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 02:05:58 +0000

The total dollar amount in losses to Internet Fraud in 2009 was $559.7 Million, according to the FBI. The losses in 2009 was more than doubled the losses of $264.6 Million in 2008.

There were 336,655 total complaints reported to the FBI in 2009, an increase of 22 percent from the previous year.

16 percent of all complaints and the most reported scam involved scammers pretending to be associated with the FBI in order to gain access to information from victims.

Source: “Reported cyberfraud losses double in 2009: FBI,” Reuters, March 12, 2010.

2009 Counterfeit goods seizures in Japan

havocscope — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 03:06:52 +0000

Customs officials in Japan seized 1.04 million counterfeit goods items in 2009, according to Finance Ministry. The total amount seized was up 10.6 percent from the previous year.

86 percent of the counterfeit items originated from China, followed by 6 percent from South Korea.

The most counterfeited good was counterfeit purses, which accounted for 55 percent of all goods seized.

Source: “Pirated goods halted by customs in 2009 top 1 million,” Japan Today, March 13, 2010.

Wildlife trade from Vietnam into China

havocscope — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:07:20 +0000

An estimated 3,000 tons of wildlife meat is consumed and exported into China from Vietnam each year.

Source: “Over 2 tons of wildlife and animal bones seized,” VietNam Net, March 11, 2010.

Rate of killings for elephants due to poaching

havocscope — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:05:03 +0000

More than 8 percent of the world’s population of elephants are being killed each year due to poaching, according to a conservation biologist at the University of Washington.

Source: Sandi Doughton, “Sale of elephant tusk stockpiles may encourage poaching, experts worry,” Seattle Times, March 11, 2010.

Corruption on the US border

havocscope — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:02:22 +0000

According to the Associated Press, from 2007 to 2010 there were over 80 corruption related convictions of law enforcement officials at all levels of government along the Southwest border.

In addition, about 10 percent of all new hires in the US Border Patrol are given a lie detector test. Out of the 10 percent given the test, 60 percent are found to be unsuitable for hire.

Source: Associated Press, “US Customs: Mexican cartels corrupt border agents,” Google News, March 11, 2010.

7 percent of 12 year olds sniffed inhalants

havocscope — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 06:53:35 +0000

Between 2006 and 2008, 7 percent of 12 year olds in the United States reported to having sniffed inhalants such as glue, nail polish remover, spray paints and cleaning fluids.

Source: Mark Guarino, “Teens and drugs: After long decline, drug use climbs,” Christian Science Monitor, March 11, 2010.

Security forces hold small portion of all small arms in circulation

havocscope — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:43:37 +0000

According to the Center for American Progress, only one third of the 875 million small and light arms in circulation around the world, or 291 million, are held by legitimate security forces.

Source: Rachel Stohl and EJ Hogendoorn, “Stopping the Destructive Spread of Small Arms,” Center for American Progress, March 10, 2010.

Software piracy rate in China in 2008

havocscope — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:35:58 +0000

According to the Business Software Alliance, 80 percent of all software used in China in 2008 was pirated. The software piracy rate was down from the 90 percent reported in 2004.

Source: Bruce Einhorn, “Software Industry Loses Patience with China,” BusinessWeek, March 10, 2010.

High level of drug abuse among police recruits in Afghanistan

havocscope — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 04:24:18 +0000

According to the United States Government Accountability Office, between 12 to 41 percent of police recruits in Afghanistan have tested positive for illegal substances.

Source: Sue Pleming, “Drug abuse is problem among Afghan police recruits,” Reuters, March 10, 2010.

Child pornography cases in Japan

havocscope — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:40:37 +0000

In 2009, Japanese officials investigated 507 cases of child pornography in the country, double the total from the previous year.

Source: AFP, “Child porn, ID theft drive record cyber crime in Japan,” Yahoo News, March 4, 2010.