Internet Fraud

California’s Internet fraud laws prohibit any fraudulent activity that takes place over the Internet that includes, but is not limited to, chat rooms, e-mails or on social media. Internet fraud is not a single crime but rather various crimes that involve the use of the Internet. Some of crimes can be prosecuted in California state courts while others are federal crimes. These crimes can involve making fraudulent on-line purchases, creating or forwarding a computer virus, and/or violating California’s cyber-stalking laws.

California has become a hotspot of Internet fraud and is a significant source of The Internet Crime Complaint Center’s complaints about Internet fraud and other computer crimes. The Internet Crime Complaint Center is a project set up by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and other organizations to combat cyber crime.

California state prosecutors are taking in increasingly tough stance on Internet fraud and in 2011 the California Attorney General created a special “eCrime Unit” to investigate and prosecute Internet fraud and cyber crime.

In order to convict someone of Internet fraud under federal law, prosecutors have to prove that the accused had a scheme, or plan, to commit fraud, or that the accused specifically intended to defraud someone. Failing these, the prosecutor has to prove that the accused used electronic communication such as email or social media to further the fraudulent scheme.

However, you should be aware that the prosecutor does not necessarily have to prove that the scheme to defraud was actually successful. Therefore, you can be convicted of Internet fraud even if you never succeeded in obtaining anyone else’s money or item of value.

If you are convicted of Internet fraud under the federal wire fraud statute, 18 U.S.C. 1343), you can be fined, sentenced to up to 20 years in federal prison, or both.

‘Phishing’ is a very common form of Internet fraud and often involves using email or the digital communications to obtain sensitive information such as someone’s social security number or their credit card information.

In an attempt to crack down on phishing scams, the California Legislature passed the 2005 Anti-Phishing Act (Business & Professions Code 22948). This act makes it illegal to use email, a webpage, or the Internet to try to and persuade someone else to provide certain information such as their social security number, credit card information or their passwords, etc. under false pretenses.

However, there are no criminal penalties for violating the Anti-Phishing Act. But, violators may be sued in a civil suit by either a person harmed by the violation or by the California Attorney General. If the plaintiff wins this suit, the defendant may have to pay damages of as much as $500,000 or even $1,500,000 if the court finds that the defendant engaged in a prolonged pattern of phishing or Internet fraud. ​Examples of Defenses Against Internet Fraud If you find yourself accused of Internet fraud, we can help you in many ways. First, we can determine if the search that turned up evidence on your computer or in your home was legal or illegal. If it was an illegal search, we can file a motion to suppress. If the motion is granted, most likely the prosecution will not have ample evidence to bring a computer crime or Internet fraud case against you.

Further, we can determine whether or not the prosecutor has insufficient proof of intent or your participation in an online fraud scam.

Internet fraudsters are often highly skilled with computers and can use other peoples’ computer systems to commit fraud. We can determine if this is the case during a preliminary investigation. If we can prove that an Internet fraudster used your computer system to commit fraud, you will be acquitted.