Definitions and Explanations

Harmless the Podcast: Understanding Important Terminologies

In this episode, Eric Oldenburg explains important terminologies and definitions that listeners may come across throughout the podcast. He elaborates on the function and structure of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC), the difference between investigations and computer forensic examinations pertaining to internet crimes against children, and the role of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). He also discusses the SHIFT Wellness program that provides support for ICAC investigators, and the technology of 'hashing', used in digital forensic investigation.

Listeners are encouraged to reach out with any queries for further clarification

[e-mail]

 

00:00 Intro 01:13 ICAC Task Force 02:13 Investigations vs. Comptuer Forensic Examinations 04:37 NCMEC 05:35 CyberTips 06:24 SHIFT 07:14  Hashing Technology 08:20  More Questions?

Episode Transcript

(00:05):
Welcome to harmless the podcast.
I'm Eric Oldenburg in this episode, we're going to go over some definitions and explanations of terms that you may hear during the conversations that you are listening to on this podcast.
If the podcast software that you use recognizes chapters, you can quickly skip through the chapters to find the definition that you need.

(00:26):
You can always keep checking back to this episode as I will update it.
When new terms and terminology need to be defined.
If there are any definitions that aren't clear.
Please do not hesitate to contact [e-mail]
and we will make sure we get that corrected.
Thank you for listening.

(00:47):
Here we go.
Let's start with the internet crimes against children task force.
The internet crimes against children task force often referred to as the ICAC task force, which is spelled capital I capital C capital a capital C.
Is a national network in the United States of over 61 coordinated task forces representing more than 5,400 federal state and local law enforcement and prosecutors, prosecutorial agencies.

(01:14):
That work to prevent and respond to internet crimes against children.
The ICAC task force program was established in 1998 by the office of juvenile justice and delinquency prevention or the O J J D P.
To help state and local agencies develop an effective response to technology facilitated child, sexual exploitation, and abuse.

(01:35):
For more information about the internet crimes against children task force, or as you will more commonly hear the ICAC task force.
Please visit ICAC taskforce.org.
That's ICA.
Task force.org.
Now let's talk about the difference between investigations and computer forensic examinations.
When it comes to internet crimes against children.

(01:56):
So there's basically two entities.
There is a group of investigators.
that received reactive complaints, typically from the national center for missing and exploited children.
And they also do proactive investigations to identify people who are actively trading, creating, consuming, and distributing.
Child sexual exploitation material.
During these investigations, the digital media vice that stored.

(02:19):
The illegal child sex abuse material file.
It has to be analyzed.
You need specific computer forensics, examination, training, and certifications in order to do that.
Now realize some agencies are so small that the same person doing the investigations also does the computer forensic examination.
So whatever evidence they seize, they go through themselves, larger agencies like the Phoenix police department, for example, have a.

(02:46):
Squad of investigators and then they have a squad of computer forensic examiners.
A typical investigation would end up in a search warrant at someone's residence.
Now, during that search warrant, oftentimes the computer forensic expert will come to the scene.
And be at the search warrant so they can triage.
And take just the digital media devices that have exploitation material on them.

(03:08):
So they're not.
Taking the phones of a grandmother or something like that.
Not every agency gets to do that.
And it's also important to know the computer forensic examiners are called several different things, depending on if they're state, federal, where they are, You may hear terms like computer forensic analyst or digital computer analyst, DCA, C F a N C F E.

(03:31):
They're all pretty much talking about people that are doing computer forensics examinations.
There's all kinds of different terminology for them, but just realize these are people with special training.
I went through that training myself.
so that you can learn how to extract evidence from a digital media device and still maintain its integrity.
So in a nutshell, investigators.

(03:53):
Do the frontline investigative work, identify the suspect, identify where the computer is hosting this material.
Once they locate that they grab the hardware or the digital media.
They give that to the computer forensic examiner who then goes through that material locates and finds the evidence and then reports it back to the investigator.
Now let's talk about the national center for missing and exploited children Often referred to in this field as Nick, Mick, Spelled N C M E C.

(04:21):
MikMak.
Nick Mick or the national center for missing and exploited children is a private nonprofit organization established in 1984 by the United States Congress, after the famous kidnapping and murder of six-year-old Adam Walsh, NickNack operates the cyber tip line, which is the nation centralized reporting system for online exploitation of children for the public and electronic service providers, such as Google or apple.

(04:52):
Nick Mick works with ICAC task forces, as well as international partners to provide forensic services, training, and technical assistance to combat.
Child sexual exploitation and missing children.
Now for this podcast, we are going to be focusing on the exploitation division of Nick Mick, or the national center.
For more information, you can visit [e-mail],

(05:14):
C Y B E R.
Tip line.org.
Cyber tips, our reports.
Now let's talk about cyber tips.
Cyber tips are reports of online child sexual exploitation that are received from Nick Mick cyber tip line.
It allows the public and ESPs or electronic service providers to report suspected cases of child sexual abuse material online enticement.

(05:36):
Child sexual trafficking and other forms of online exploitation of children.
Nick Mick then does preliminary analysis and forwards the reports to the appropriate ICAC task force or federal agency for review and possible investigation.
So for an idea of how many cyber tip reports.
Are received.
From the national center in 2022, they received over 32 million.

(06:01):
And if you remember correctly, we have 61 task forces.
In the internet crimes against children task force.
So do the math yourself.
Let's talk about the shift wellness program shift stands for supporting heroes in mental health foundational training.
And it's a program that teaches ICAC investigators about the causes and symptoms of vicarious trauma and stress.

(06:23):
And provides them with effective strategies and tools to cope with and build resilience.
against the trauma.
The program is foundational training.
It is not treatment.
It was developed and provided by the innocent justice foundation who was partnering with me on this podcast.
To date shift wellness has conducted over 440 trainings.

(06:43):
And trained over 47,000 investigators and computer forensic examiners working on internet crimes.
For more information on the shift wellness program and how you can support them.
Visit shift wellness.org.
Now let's talk about the technology of hashing during our conversations, you will hear people refer to the technique of hashing.

(07:07):
What hashing is, is basically converting any type of digital data into a fixed length alphanumeric output.
Data's converted into what's called hash values by using a special algorithm, much like taking the fingerprint of a person.
In child exploitation investigation, these hash values are used as digital fingerprints of known child exploitation, pictures, and videos to quickly locate them in large datasets.

(07:33):
There's a large hash set available to anybody doing these types of investigations.
That contains millions and millions of just the fingerprints or hash values.
Of known child sex abuse materials that are readily available for anybody doing these types of investigations.
For more information about how to get ahold of these hash sets.

(07:55):
It's if it's something you'd be interested in.
You can visit Project vic.org.
That's project V I c.org.
If there is part of a conversation, you have heard that you don't understand a need clarification on, please.
Submit a request to harmless the [e-mail].

(08:16):
And I will add it to this episode.
Thank you very much for your listening and thank you very much for your support.
And as always, if you know somebody.
Who needs to hear this podcast, please make sure you send it to them.
Thank you.