Theft by internet
I’ve lived most of my nineteen years of life in a city where being a crook is glorified. To be more specific, being an internet crook is glorified. Any body with half a neuron who can post a picture on the web, claiming it’s for sale, asking for a deposit before delivery, which of course never happens is considered somewhat of a folk hero in this town.
I myself am an advocate of common sense, which includes not stealing, or committing fraud. That basically turns me into something of a laughing stock and an antichrist. The only reason behind this is the fact that the police is in on the operation. Otherwise there wouldn’t be any of these folk heroes roaming around in their parvenu expensive luxury cars with bad quality music turned on so loud you can hear them coming from a mile. Not only do they flaunt their illegally attained wealth but they taunt the honest people as well. This is my own view point which I base upon personal daily experiences.
Before we get started down the path of “death to the internet criminals” we should consider however that it takes two to make a vice. Simply put there are certain people in high places that tolerate the presence of such individuals. Firstly let’s take the example of car dealers. What normal sane person would sell to an adolescent a four wheel drive, with the customer paying in cash? Ration would dictate that any reasonably qualified individual would understand that an eighteen year old can’t possibly have ten thousand euros in hand other than by dishonest and illegal methods. However they not only ignore who their selling it to, but also what they sell: high powered cars to inexperienced and irresponsible teenagers. Naturally they shrug when their customers cause fatal accidents claiming they have no responsibility.
This is just the most flagrant example of criminal indifference manifest on the part of those who are often victims themselves of such frauds. Another more insulting and damaging actions of such parties, such as internet providers, is the almost constant and totally blatant infringement on privacy. The company periodically swoops through its users to see what they’ve been doing, who they’ve been talking to, what have they been watching and so on. This would at least be somewhat compensated by the finding of those who perpetrate frauds and theft on the internet. But of course those people are always mysteriously not active in the strategic moments.
And finally to add one last proverbial insult to all the injury, and quite frankly another injury the software companies adopt the worst possible consumer policy. Thusly a physical person cannot indefinitely own for example antivirus software. He must constantly renew the license every year; otherwise he’ll be put in the same lot with the frauds. This wouldn’t be a problem if everyone was given the same treatment. However judicial persons, that is to say companies, buy these licenses once and permanently. Clearly this is discriminatory action directed expressly towards the people who can’t afford to hire expensive lawyers and file year long legal suits. As a side note this matter of insider trading and other economic sabotage activities done by companies within or through software has been noticed, and justly finned, harshly, by the European council. This Wild West attitude of the leading software companies can only serve to further complicate matters. While being scrupulousless in regard to sabotaging the competition and making a profit, they instantly turn into court, jury and judge when it comes to someone other than a company who doesn’t respect the law. What I’m trying to say is that they’re sabotaging the same laws they claim are there to protect them. The moment the financial system itself starts respecting the laws created for the good of all is the moment all the frauds and other folk heroes who make a living cheating honest people out of their work on the internet cease to have a life mandate. I sincerely hope that moment is very close, but a part of me who knows the richest person on earth is a software creator, says that things are very unlikely to change.