White-collar crooks using the digital domain to commit crime are prevalent in Hawai'i, as the state ranks in the top 10 for highest number of perpetrators per 100,000 residents, according to FBI statistics.

There were 44.5 alleged electronic fraud criminals per 100,000 residents in Hawai'i last year, putting the state eighth on the FBI's watch list. Hawai'i trails New York, Delaware, Florida, Montana, Washington, Nevada and Washington, D.C.

"We are very concerned with the victimization in Hawai'i in particular because the culture of our Islands is one of trust. Thus, many times our victims just could not believe it would happen to them," U.S. attorney Ed Kubo said.

"Those who are perpetuating Internet crimes feel that they can hide behind the cloak of secrecy when they scam our innocent victims out of their hard-earned money. These criminals do not care what circumstances their victims are in as long as they can successfully get their ill-gotten gains.

"What bothers me about this trend of Internet crime is that in this technological age, these types of crimes are increasing at a faster rate than other crimes."

Hawai'i averages about 800 Internet criminal complaints every year.

In 2007, Hawai'i residents reported Internet fraud losses of more than $1 million, with auction fraud and failure to deliver paid-for merchandise the most prevalent forms of online crime.

Users of eBay and other online auction houses are required to pay for their merchandise before receipt. Often, Internet fraud purveyors will post pictures of merchandise that does not exist. The winner of the auction will send a payment using a credit card or third-party transaction handler such as PayPal.

The criminal will keep the money and after about a week, when the merchandise doesn't arrive, the purchaser will file a complaint with the auction house. By the time the complaint is forwarded to law enforcement officials, the criminal is often long gone, law enforcement officials said.

The FBI has warned that given the global economic woes, identity thieves and Internet fraud schemes are on the rise. Hawai'i had the 17th-highest rate of complaints per 100,000 residents in 2008 with 84.92.

"Internet crime is something we are closely monitoring in Hawai'i. Given what our data shows us, regarding the frequency of these complaints happening in the state, we urge the public to be vigilant with their personal information whenever they are working, shopping or playing online," said FBI special agent Brandon Simpson.

RECORD COMPLAINTS

The criminal landscape has changed, despite the increase.

In 2001, Hawai'i had the second-highest number of Internet fraud complaints per capita in the nation, according to the FBI. That 2001 International Fraud Complaint Center report stated that Hawai'i had 8.9 complaints for every 100,000 residents. Hawai'i was second only to Washington, D.C., which had 9.4 complaints per capita in 2001.

Nationally last year, complaints of online crime hit a record high of 275,284, a 33.1 percent increase over the previous year. The total dollar loss linked to online fraud was $265 million, about $25 million more than in 2007. The average individual loss was $931, according to the FBI report.

Non-delivery of merchandise and non-payment accounted for 32.9 percent of all reported 2008 crimes. Internet auction fraud was the second most reported offense (25.5 percent), followed by credit/debit card fraud (9 percent).

"The report demonstrates that in a technology-driven global market, the inability of consumers to distinguish between legitimate and fraudulent activities poses a serious threat to our economy," said Don Brackman, director of the National White Collar Crime Center, in a statement. "The financial losses that result have an impact on each and every one of us."