Internet crime: What a tangled web

That financial fraudsters will practise to deceive is a big worry as the World Wide Web and other Internet services proliferate. And when electronic cash is commonplace what will become of the traditional monetary system? Michelle Celarier reports on criminal bugs in a promising-looking system and the solutions proposed by regulators and law-enforcers

The bright-blue starry sky depicted on an Australian web page for Fortuna Alliance offers an enticing proposition: “Make your income soar like the space shuttle.” But a click of the mouse is enough to bring World Wide Web surfers down to earth. A web press release by Fortuna acknowledges that its US home page was shut down by the US Federal Trade Commission in May, after the company had been accused of running an illegal pyramid scheme.

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