Internet frauds

What is an Internet fraud? It is any type of fraud scheme that uses one or more components of the Internet. The components may be: chat rooms, message boards, e-mail, or Web sites... People who engage in fraud, often seek to take advantage of the unique capabilities of the Internet, like sending e-mail messages worldwide only in seconds, or posting Web site information which is accessible from anywhere in the world...
Here are some typical and most common Internet fraud schemes: auction and retail schemes online (most frequently reported form of Internet fraud) (these schemes induce their victims to send money for the promised items, but then deliver nothing or only an item far less valuable than what was promised) ; business opportunity/"Work-at-Home" schemes online (fraudulent schemes often use the Internet to advertise purported business opportunities that will allow individuals to earn thousands of dollars a month in "work-at-home" ventures.) ; credit-card schemes (some Internet fraud schemes, which appear to be variations on the online auction schemes described earlier, involve the use of unlawfully obtained credit card numbers to order goods or services online.).
So, as you can see, new, innovative technologies may be used for very bad purposes (especially when talking about the vulnerabilities of the new technologies) as well as good... People should be extremely careful to protect themselves from these kinds of frauds... Fortunately, there are some simple ways to at least increase your safety. If you want to avoid being frauded, you should be very careful about giving out valuable personal data online and be especially careful about online communications with someone who conceals his/her true identity.
There is also an institution which prosecutes the cases of Internet frauds. It's the Dept. of Justice, and it established its Internet Fraud Initiative in February, 1999 ...