COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams July 20 2020 Congressional Research Service https crsreports congress gov R46461 SUMMARY COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams R46461 July 20 2020 Kristin Finklea Criminals and other malicious actors often seek to capitalize on world events for their gain Specialist in Domestic Currently some are leveraging the Coronavirus Disease 2019 COVID-19 pandemic and relying Security on heightened public interest in it to take advantage of individuals and organizations These schemes range from criminals claiming to be from a charitable organization or government agency and tricking individuals into providing money or personally identifiable information PII to fraudsters selling bogus or counterfeit treatments for COVID-19 or protective equipment and medical devices that may or may not be delivered after victims submit payment Further scammers have tried to use stolen PII to gain access to and steal unemployment benefits and economic impact payments provided pursuant to the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act CARES Act P L 116-136 On March 16 2020 Attorney General William Barr issued a memorandum to U S Attorney’s Offices regarding the Department of Justice’s DOJ’s COVID-19 related enforcement priorities The memorandum stated that “ e very U S Attorney’s Office is thus hereby directed to prioritize the detection investigation and prosecution of all criminal conduct related to the current pandemic ” With the proliferation of COVID-19-related scams federal law enforcement has established several specific mechanisms to coordinate efforts For instance the Attorney General requested that each U S Attorney’s Office establish a Coronavirus Coordinator to serve as a legal counsel for the federal judicial district on COVID-19-related matters prosecute or aid in the prosecution of COVID-19-related cases and conduct public awareness and outreach activities regarding COVID-19 issues Investigative agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI also lead and participate in task forces and working groups specifically targeting COVID-19-related scams DOJ has also conducted outreach to federal agencies charged with administering funding related to the CARES Act to help prevent and detect scams In addition DOJ has directed the public to report potential COVID-19 scams to the National Center for Disaster Fraud NCDF and the FBI points potential victims to several reporting systems including the NCDF and the Internet Crime Complaint Center and to reporting directly to the FBI through its tip line or local field offices In addition to establishing new efforts to counter COVID-19-related fraud DOJ can leverage its existing tools to target scammers Officials have noted that this fraud is often cyber enabled Federal law enforcement has the principal role in investigating and attributing cyber incidents to specific perpetrators and this responsibility has been established within the broader framework of federal cyber incident response DOJ leads these efforts through the FBI and the National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force NCIJTF However federal agencies involved in countering cyber threats and those related to COVID-19 are not limited to agencies within DOJ Other federal law enforcement such as the U S Secret Service Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and Customs and Border Protection have been working to investigate COVID-19 related scams and entities such as the Federal Trade Commission Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Health and Human Services among others have been promoting public awareness about prominent scams Efforts from DOJ and other entities to counter COVID-19-related fraud involve both prevention e g awareness campaigns and response e g investigations activities As policymakers examine the federal government’s efforts to stop these scams they may question the potential effects of agencies’ investments in prevention activities and law enforcement response on reducing the prevalence and impacts of pandemic-related fraud Relatedly they may look to how the agencies themselves are evaluating the effects of the resources they have placed toward countering these scams Congressional Research Service COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams Contents COVID-19 Scams 2 Scamming Victims Out of Money Directly 2 Leveraging Stolen Personal Information 3 Department of Justice Response 5 DOJ’s Role in Countering Cybercrime 6 FBI Cyber Investigations 7 A Broad Federal Response 9 Contacts Author Information 10 Congressional Research Service COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams riminals and other malicious actors often seek to capitalize on world events for their gain Some criminals are leveraging heightened interest in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 COVID-19 pandemic to take advantage of individuals and organizations 1 Officials have cautioned about a host of scams and other criminal activity relating to the pandemic These range from criminals claiming to be from a charitable organization or government agency and tricking individuals into providing money or personally identifiable information PII to fraudsters selling bogus or counterfeit treatments for COVID-19 or personal protective equipment PPE and medical devices that may or may not be delivered after victims submit payment 2 The Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI noted that “as of May 28 2020 the Internet Crime Complaint Center IC3 received nearly the same amount of complaints in 2020 about 320 000 as they had for the entirety of 2019 about 400 000 Approximately 75% of these complaints are frauds and swindles ”3 In addition the Federal Trade Commission FTC received more than 134 100 complaints approximately 69 600 of which were specific to fraud related to the COVID-19 pandemic including the loss of over $87 million to fraud in the first six and a half months of 2020 4 C On March 16 2020 Attorney General William Barr issued a memorandum to U S Attorney’s Offices regarding the Department of Justice’s DOJ’s COVID-19-related enforcement priorities The memorandum stated that “ e very U S Attorney’s Office is thus hereby directed to prioritize the detection investigation and prosecution of all criminal conduct related to the current pandemic ”5 Less than one week later DOJ announced its first enforcement action against COVID-19 fraudsters In doing so the department alleged that the website “coronavirusmedicalkit com” was claiming to provide consumers with access to World Health Organization WHO coronavirus vaccine kits if they provided their credit card information to pay for shipping 6 This report provides a brief overview of the types of scams criminals may use to steal money and PII from individuals and businesses The report also discusses federal law enforcement’s role— specifically DOJ’s role—in investigating and prosecuting these scams Congress in examining DOJ’s priorities going forward may look to the resources DOJ has placed toward countering fraud more broadly and toward specific nefarious activity capitalizing on the COVID-19 pandemic 1 See for example Department of Justice DOJ Combatting COVID-19 Fraud at https www justice gov coronavirus combattingfraud For more information on COVID-19 see the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Coronavirus COVID-19 at https www cdc gov coronavirus 2019-ncov index html 2 Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center FBI Sees Rise in Fraud Schemes Related to the Coronavirus COVID-19 Pandemic Alert Number I-032020-PSA March 20 2020 FBI testimony before the U S Congress Senate Committee on the Judiciary COVID-19 Fraud Law Enforcement’s Response to Those Exploiting the Pandemic 116 th Cong 2 nd sess June 9 2020 4 Federal T rade Commission FT C FTC COVID-19 and Stimulus Reports January 1 2020 – July 16 2020 accessed July 19 2020 3 5 Department of Justice DOJ Memorandum for All United States Attorneys COVID-19-Department of Justice Priorities March 16 2020 Department of Justice DOJ “ Federal Court Issues T emporary Restraining Order Against Website Offering Fraudulent Coronavirus Vaccine ” press release March 22 2020 Notably there are currently no approved vaccines to protect against COVID-19 6 Congressional Research Service 1 COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams COVID-19 Scams Generally fraud is a profit-driven crime Fraudsters may attempt to scam victims—individuals and organizations including government programs—out of money directly or steal victims’ personal information to profit in other ways COVID-19-related fraud is no different 7 While this section presents examples of COVID-19-related scams it is not meant to be representative of the full spectrum of scams and tools criminals are utilizing to take advantage of the pandemic Scamming Victims Out of Money Directly Fraudsters have used a number of scams to prey on public interest in the COVID-19 pandemic People seek up-to-date information about the disease attempt to purchase PPE such as masks want to learn about or purchase preventive treatments or potential cures and try to support front line workers and charities that deliver much-needed resources The following are examples of how fraudsters take advantage of the pandemic    Swindlers have tried to sell counterfeit drugs and medical equipment or have pretended to sell PPE such as masks that are never delivered scamming buyers out of money and potentially endangering lives For example DOJ arrested two individuals who tried to scam victims out of more than $4 million by falsely representing the legitimacy of their company and purporting to sell boxes of PPE the boxes were empty and law enforcement disrupted the scheme before victims lost their money 8 DOJ filed a civil forfeiture complaint against several PayPal accounts associated with fraudulent websites These websites were run by individuals in China purporting to sell masks some victims never received anything and others received alternate nonmedical items such as toys or jewelry 9 Law enforcement and consumer protection agencies have warned against scammers masquerading as charitable organizations addressing the pandemic 10 The FBI has reported that “law enforcement has seen an increase in social media scams and telephone calls fraudulently seeking donations for illegitimate or nonexistent charitable organizations requesting victims’ bank account information ”11 The FBI has also worked with private sector internet domain providers and registrars to disrupt fraudsters including taking down malicious websites such as one pretending to collect donations for American Red Cross COVID-19 relief efforts 12 7 T he Department of Justice is also countering price gouging and hoarding of goods related to the pandemic but these are beyond the scope of this report Department of Justice DOJ “ T wo Individuals Arrested for Conspiring to Defraud Purported Purchasers of Personal Protective Equipment ” press release April 27 2020 8 Department of Justice DOJ “ U S Files Civil Forfeiture Complaint in COVID-19 Fraud Case ” press release June 10 2020 10 See for example Federal T rade Commission FT C Make Your Coronavirus Donations Count May 5 2020 9 11 Department of Justice DOJ Coronavirus Response Combatting COVID-19 Fraud at https www justice gov coronavirus combattingfraud Department of Justice DOJ “ Department of Justice Announces Disruption of Hundreds of Online COVID-19 Related Scams ” press release April 22 2020 12 Congressional Research Service 2 COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams Leveraging Stolen Personal Information Criminals who steal victims’ PII can use it to gain access to victims’ existing accounts or establish new accounts that can be used for profit For instance scammers have tried to use stolen PII to redirect unemployment benefits and economic impact payments EIP provided pursuant to the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act CARES Act P L 116-136 The Identity Theft Resource Center ITRC reports an uptick in queries related to COVID-19 fraud and that traffic to the center was 850% higher in March 2020 than in March 2019 13 Fraudsters may use a number of tactics including phone calls or email phishing 14 schemes in which they pretend to be a representative of a legitimate organization to try and steal PII that they can then leverage to their advantage The following are examples of how fraudsters have used interest in the pandemic to steal PII    Hackers have preyed upon public interest in mapping the spread of COVID-19 In one scheme they sold a malware15 infection kit to fraudsters who used an interactive map of COVID-19 cases produced by Johns Hopkins University to infect computers with malware This malware was designed to steal passwords such that when unsuspecting users clicked on the map for information their devices would become infected 16 It is believed that hackers used the AZORult malware “one of the most commonly bought and sold stealers in Russian cybercrime forums ”17 Thieves have used stolen PII to set up fraudulent accounts on the IRS website and those who previously stole victims’ PII and filed taxes using a stolen identity may also be able to receive the EIPs allocated to those individuals as part of the CARES Act 18 DOJ has indicted individuals for attempting to defraud the government by filing false loan applications in attempts to receive forgivable Paycheck Protection Program PPP loans pursuant to the CARES Act Some tried to swindle the government out of millions of dollars in loan money by falsifying business information 19 13 Identity T heft Resource Center IT RC COVID-19 Resources at https www idtheftcenter org covid-19-resources T he IT RC is a nonprofit resource center focused primarily on supporting identity theft victims in the United States See also Nathaniel Popper “‘Pure Hell for Victims’ as Stimulus Programs Draw a Flood of Scammers ” The New York Times April 24 2020 Phishing is “an attempt by an individual or group to solicit personal information from unsuspecting users by employing social engineering techniques ” See U S Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency at https uscert cisa gov report-phishing 15 T he term malware refers to “ A program that is inserted into a system usually covertly with the intent of compromising the confidentiality integrity or availability of the victim’s data applications or operating system or of otherwise annoying or disrupting the victim ” National Institute of Standards and T echnology NIST “Malware ” Computer Security Resources Center Glossary 14 16 “ Live Coronavirus Map Used to Spread Malware ” Krebs On Security March 12 2020 17 Alexander Eremin Kaspersky AZORult Rewriting History March 22 2019 Nathaniel Popper “ ‘Pure Hell for Victims’ as Stimulus Programs Draw a Flood of Scammers ” The New York Times April 24 2020 T he IRS has issued warnings to taxpayers cautioning about potential fraud See for example Internal Revenue Service IRS “ IRS Issues Warning about Coronavirus-Related Scams Watch Out for Schemes T ied to Economic Impact Payments ” press release April 2 2020 18 See for example Department of Justice DOJ “ Massachusetts Man Charged with COVID-Relief Fraud ” press release June 22 2020 19 Congressional Research Service 3 COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams  Fraudsters have taken advantage of the surge in unemployment claims and have used stolen PII to receive unemployment benefits For example the Secret Service issued an alert noting that a “well-organized Nigerian crime ring is exploiting the COVID-19 crisis by committing large-scale fraud against multiple state unemployment insurance programs with potential losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars ”20 These criminals are reportedly using stolen PII to apply for state unemployment benefits and then relying on money mules intermediaries often recruited through online romance scams to receive the illicit money and forward it to them 21  Law enforcement has received reports of scammers offering COVID-19 testing services in order to get Medicare beneficiary information which they can then use to submit fraudulent medical claims for reimbursement—related or unrelated to COVID-19 22 While the pandemic may have presented new opportunities for criminals to leverage fraudsters still rely upon a number of tried-and-true tools to scam victims or gain access to information accounts and resources For instance they continue to make robocalls phish for information through emails and social media install malware on unsuspecting users’ devices and exploit technology vulnerabilities These scams generally seem to have a cyber component in that they are carried out or facilitated by the internet and evolving technology In addition criminals leverage both the surface web and dark web to facilitate these schemes Fraudsters on the Dark Web23 The layers of the internet go far beyond the surface content that many can easily access in their typical searches The other content is that of the deep web content that has not been indexed by traditional search engines such as Google The furthest corners of the deep web segments known as the dark web contain content that has been intentionally concealed The dark web may be used for legitimate purposes as well as to conceal criminal or otherwise malicious activities Fraudsters taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic have leveraged dark web marketplaces as an additional venue through which to sell legal or illegal legitimate or counterfeit and plentiful or scarce products and information For instance personal protective equipment such as N95 masks gowns and gloves have been found for sale on these marketplaces In addition there are reports that unapproved preventive drugs or cures such as the drug chloroquine24 have been listed on these marketplaces Even blood alleged to have belonged to recovered coronavirus patients was found for sale 25 However it is unclear the extent to which scammers rely on the dark web instead of the surface web to sell pandemic-related goods and services and to carry out scams For instance the sale of some goods on the dark web may be limited by the “availability of similar goods on the surface web and the wider customer base not being traditional dark web users ” 26 Reduced product supply on the surface web though could correlate with customers seeking these goods on the dark web “ U S Secret Service ‘Massive Fraud’ Against State Unemployment Insurance Programs ” Krebs On Security May 16 2020 21 Ibid See also Mike Baker “ Feds Suspect Vast Fraud Network Is T argeting U S Unemployment Systems ” The New York Times May 17 2020 20 22 Department of Justice DOJ Department of Justice Enforcement Actions Related to COVID-19 March 24 2020 23 For more information on the dark web see CRS Report R44101 Dark Web For more information about chloroquine and related drugs see CRS Insight IN11347 Treatment of COVID-19 Hydroxychloroquine and Chloroquine 24 25 Sooraj Shah “ Dark web scammers exploit Covid-19 fear and doubt ” BBC News May 19 2020 26 EUROPOL Catching the Virus Cybercrime Disinformation and the COVID-19 Pandemic April 3 2020 p 10 Congressional Research Service 4 COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams Department of Justice Response With the proliferation of COVID-19 related scams DOJ has established several specific mechanisms to coordinate efforts to combat them For instance DOJ has directed the public to report COVID-19-related scams to the National Center for Disaster Fraud NCDF within DOJ ’s Criminal Division The NCDF’s mission is to “improve and further the detection prevention investigation and prosecution of fraud related to natural and man-made disasters and to advocate for the victims of such fraud ”27 The FBI points potential victims to several reporting systems including the NCDF and the Internet Crime Complaint Center IC3 and to reporting directly to the bureau through its tip line or local FBI field offices 28 Federal law enforcement therefore has a number of pathways to receive information about COVID-19-related scams As Congress examines federal law enforcement’s response to the pandemic policymakers may look to these different pathways to see if they are sufficient to ensure that the full spectrum of reports are being received and that there are means to establish clear jurisdiction over particular crimes Reporting COVID-19 Scams There is no central repository where individuals and organizations report complaints of fraud COVID-19-related or otherwise However there are a number of reporting systems for the public to report suspected incidents of fraud and those systems may share information to help law enforcement consolidate and deconflict public complaints about such incidents including those related to COVID-19 Examples of federal entities to which victims may report include the following  National Center for Disaster Fraud NCDF The NCDF is a repository for the public to report complaints of disaster-related fraud to DOJ 29 It was created in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and continues to serve as a resource for reporting fraud related to natural and man-made disasters  Internet Crime Complaint Center IC3 The IC3 is a mechanism for the public to report all types of Internet-related crime to the FBI 30 Originally established as the Internet Fraud Complaint Center in 2000 it was renamed in 2003 to reflect the nature of the internet- and cyber-related crimes reported to the center In addition to providing information to law enforcement the IC3 also shares alerts with industry partners and the public  Consumer Sentinel The FTC’s Consumer Sentinel is a mechanism for the public to report a range of consumer complaints to the commission which in turn shares these complaints with law enforcement 31 The Sentinel network provides law enforcement with tips on complaints including frauds involving consumer product scams credit and telemarketing scams and identity theft  FBI’s tip line The FBI’s system accepts tips on potential terrorist activity and reports of federal crimes such as fraud—including COVID-19-related fraud 32 However callers are directed to report internet-based fraud to the IC3 In addition to the FBI other federal state and local law enforcement entities have their own tip lines where individuals can report scams 33 27 Ibid See also Department of Justice DOJ Department of Justice Coronavirus Response at https www justice gov coronavirus DOJresponse T he NCDF when appropriate shares information with the FT C’s Sentinel Database which contains consumer complaints across a variety of categories collecting complaints from at least 35 databases across the country and is available to law enforcement 28 See https www fbi gov coronavirus 29 For more information see https www justice gov disaster-fraud 30 For more information see https www ic3 gov about default aspx For more information see https www ftc gov enforcement consumer-sentinel-network 31 32 For more information see https www fbi gov tips 33 For example U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE Homeland Security Investigations HSI directs the public to report COVID-19 related fraud to a special DHS email tip line COVID19FRAUD@DHS gov est ablished for these types of reports Congressional Research Service 5 COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams In addition to providing mechanisms for the public to report information about COVID-19-related scams DOJ has established several coordinated efforts to counter criminal activity associated with the pandemic For example    the Attorney General requested that each U S Attorney’s Office establish a Coronavirus Coordinator to serve as a legal counsel for the federal judicial district on COVID-19-related matters prosecute or aid in the prosecution of COVID-19-related cases and conduct public awareness and outreach activities regarding COVID-1934 the FBI has formed—along with DOJ’s Fraud Section and the Small Business Administration’s Inspector General—a Paycheck Protection Program PPP Working Group to counter fraud against the program The FBI reported that the working group had identified over $42 million in potential fraud and recovered over $900 000 as of early June 202035 and DOJ’s Criminal Division has “engaged in outreach to agencies tasked with implementing and overseeing CARES Act funds to design programs to detect and deter fraudulent conduct in the first instance They are also coordinating with investigative agencies to identify key indicia of COVID-19 CARES Act related fraud schemes and to make sure information about emerging patterns and practices of fraudsters are shared across the relevant law enforcement community ”36 In addition to establishing new efforts to counter COVID-19-related fraud DOJ can leverage its existing tools to target scammers As officials have noted fraud related to COVID-19 is often cyber-enabled in some form37 the section below focuses on DOJ’s role in countering cybercrime including fraud DOJ’s Role in Countering Cybercrime Federal law enforcement has the principal role in investigating and attributing cyber incidents to specific perpetrators and this responsibility has been established within the broader framework of federal cyber incident response In a 2016 Presidential Policy Directive the Obama Administration outlined how the government responds to significant cyber incidents—those that are “likely to result in demonstrable harm to the national security interests foreign relations or economy of the United States or to the public confidence civil liberties or public health and safety of the American people ”38 Responding to cyber incidents involves 1 threat response 2 asset response and 3 intelligence support DOJ through the FBI and National Cyber 34 Department of Justice DOJ Coordinated Nationwide Response to Detect Deter and Punish Crime Relating to the National Emergency Caused by COVID-19 March 19 2020 FBI testimony before the U S Congress Senate Committee on the Judiciary COVID-19 Fraud Law Enforcement’s Response to Those Exploiting the Pandemic 116 th Cong 2 nd sess June 9 2020 35 DOJ testimony before the U S Congress Senate Committee on the Judiciary COVID-19 Fraud Law Enforcement’s Response to Those Exploiting the Pandemic 116 th Cong 2 nd sess June 9 2020 37 See U S Secret Service testimony before the U S Congress Senate Committee on the Judiciary COVID-19 Fraud Law Enforcement’s Response to Those Exploiting the Pandemic 116 th Cong 2 nd sess June 9 2020 36 38 T he White House Presidential Policy Directive—United States Cyber Incident Coordination PPD-41 July 26 2016 Of note it is unclear whether any of the cyber incidents discussed in this CRS report may be considered a “significant cyber incident ” Further there have been no official indications that the T rump Administration has changed this approach to cyber incident response Congressional Research Service 6 COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams Investigative Joint Task Force NCIJTF is the designated lead on threat response 39 Threat response involves conducting appropriate law enforcement and national security investigative activity at the affected entity’s site collecting evidence and gathering intelligence providing attribution linking related incidents identifying additional affected entities identifying threat pursuit and disruption opportunities developing and executing courses of action to mitigate the immediate threat and facilitating information sharing and operational coordination with asset response 40 Defining a Cyber Incident A principal issue in understanding how the federal government responds to a cyber incident is the definition of a cyber incident A host of terms are used in discussing malicious activity with a cyber online or technological component These range from cyber attack and cyberwarfare to cybercrime cyber espionage and cyber terrorism A key distinction between these malicious incidents is the actor’s motivation For instance a criminal may be profit motivated while a terrorist may be politically motivated However “the speed and anonymity of cyber attacks makes distinguishing among the actions of terrorists criminals and nation states difficult a task which often occurs only after the fact if at all ” 41 Cyber incident therefore is an umbrella term encompassing a range of malicious activity carried out by diverse actors with varying motivations and capabilities—all of whom exploit cyberspace 42 The federal government has defined a cyber incident as “an event occurring on or conducted through a computer network that actually or imminently jeopardizes the integrity confidentiality or availability of computers information or communications systems or networks physical or virtual infrastructure controlled by computers or information systems or information resident thereon ”43 As such an incident could capture an array of activities carried out by malicious actors ranging from hacktivists and criminals to nation states and terrorists Notably the federal government has not developed official def initions for specific subsets of cyber incidents—such as cybercrime—that distinguish them from other subsets 44 FBI Cyber Investigations The FBI pursues cybercrime cases ranging from computer hacking and intellectual property rights violations to child exploitation fraud and identity theft Its top priorities involve combating 39 For more information on the FBI’s cyber investigations see https www fbi gov investigate cyber Information on the NCIJT F is available at https www fbi gov investigate cyber national-cyber-investigative-joint-task-force See also CRS Report R44926 Justice Department’s Role in Cyber Incident Response T he Department of Homeland Security through the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center is the lead on asset response T he Office of the Director of National Intelligence through the Cyber T hreat Intelligence Integration Center is the lead on intelligence support 40 T he White House Presidential Policy Directive—United States Cyber Incident Coordination PPD-41 July 26 2016 41 Department of Homeland Security DHS National Strategy to Secure Cyberspace February 2003 p viii 42 T he National Security Presidential Directive 54 Homeland Security Presidential Directive 23 NSPD-54 HSPD-23 defines cyberspace as “ the interdependent network of information technology infrastructures and includes the Internet telecommunications networks computer systems and embedded processors and controllers in critical industries ” In other words cyberspace is the “ virtual environment of information and interactions between people ” National Security Agency Statement for the Record Lieutenant General Keith Alexander Commander Joint Functional Component Command for Network Warfare Before the House Armed Services Committee T errorism Unconventional T hreats and Capabilities Subcommittee May 5 2009 43 T he White House Presidential Policy Directive—United States Cyber Incident Coordination PPD-41 July 26 2016 T he PPD noted that this definition could include vulnerabilities in information systems system security procedures internal controls or implementation that could ultimately be exploited by a threat actor 44 For a policy discussion on issues defining different types of cyber incidents such as a definition of cybercrime see CRS Report R42547 Cybercrime Conceptual Issues for Congress and U S Law Enforcement Congressional Research Service 7 COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams computer and network intrusions and investigating ransomware The FBI’s cyber priorities focus on “high-level intrusions by state-sponsored hackers global organized crime syndicates and other technically sophisticated and dangerous actors ”45 It is unclear which portion of COVID-19 related scams might fall under these priorities The FBI leads a variety of law enforcement task forces and partnerships focused on cyber threat response      National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force NCIJTF The NCIJTF was established by National Security Presidential Directive-54 Homeland Security Presidential Directive-23 in January 2008 As established the NCIJTF’s mission is to “serve as a multi-agency national focal point for coordinating integrating and sharing pertinent information related to cyber threat investigations ”46 Led by the FBI the NCIJTF coordinates over 20 U S agencies including law enforcement intelligence and the military It also collaborates with the private sector and international partners Cyber Task Forces CTFs There is a CTF at each FBI field office These CTFs focus on local cybersecurity threats respond to incidents and maintain relationships with companies and institutions They also support the national effort to combat cybercrime by participating in national virtual teams on certain cyber issues and providing cyber subject matter experts or surge capability outside of their field office jurisdiction when needed 47 Cyber Action Teams CATs In 2006 the FBI established CATs of agents and computer scientists that can be rapidly deployed around the country or the world to assist in computer-intrusion investigations CAT members have expertise in various computer languages forensic investigations and analysis of malware 48 Cyber Assistant Legal Attachés ALATs In addition to domestic field offices pursuing international leads in investigations the FBI has positioned cyber ALATs in some foreign countries These ALATs work with law enforcement in host countries to share information collaborate on investigations and enhance relationships with partner agencies They focus on “identifying disrupting and dismantling cyber threat actors and organizations ”49 Private Sector Partnerships In addition to the IC3 the FBI has established several initiatives to interface with the private sector and general public regarding cyber incidents Through these initiatives the FBI collects and shares information builds partnerships and enhances awareness For instance the National Cyber-Forensics and Training Alliance NCFTA is a nonprofit 45 Statement of FBI Director Christopher Wray before the U S Congress Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Worldwide Threats 116 th Cong 1 st sess November 5 2019 46 T he White House National Security Presidential Directive-54 Homeland Security Presidential Directive-23 January 8 2008 47 Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Cyber Task Forces Building Alliances to Improve the Nation ’s Cybersecurity 48 Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI The Cyber Action Team Rapidly Responding to Major Computer Intrusions March 4 2015 49 Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI National Cyber Security Awareness Month FBI Deploys Cyber Experts to Work Directly With Foreign Partners October 26 2016 ALAT s have been placed in London England T he Hague Netherlands T allinn Estonia Kyiv Ukraine and Ottawa Canada among other locations Congressional Research Service 8 COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams information-sharing organization that brings together subject matter experts from law enforcement the private sector and academia to target cybercrime it produces unclassified intelligence assessments and develops strategies to mitigate cyber threats 50 In addition InfraGard is a collaboration between the FBI and private sector partners such as business executives entrepreneurs c omputer professionals academia the military law enforcement and other government officials the program facilitates information sharing with the goal of protecting U S critical infrastructure 51 A Broad Federal Response Federal agencies involved in countering COVID-19-related scams are not limited to those within DOJ DOJ investigates and prosecutes fraud and provides consumer awareness but federal efforts to counter these scams include agencies in other departments as well For instance within the Department of Homeland Security DHS U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations ICE HSI launched Operation Stolen Promise to bring together the agency’s “expertise in global trade investigations financial fraud and cyber investigations with robust private and public partnerships to disrupt and dismantle this criminal activity COVID-19 related fraud and strengthen global supply-chain security ”52 In addition ICE HSI works with U S Customs and Border Protection CBP to prevent smugglers from bringing “fraudulent mislabeled and unauthorized COVID-19 related products such as purported anti-viral products PPE and test kits” into the United States 53 Further the U S Secret Service and its electronic and financial crimes task forces investigate cyber-enabled financial crimes related to the pandemic The Secret Service like other federal law enforcement agencies is also working on task forces specifically designed to counter pandemic -related fraud and conducting outreach with industry partners 54 In addition to investigating and prosecuting fraudsters exploiting the pandemic federal agencies enhance public awareness of potential scams 55 The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and FTC for instance provide tips to organizations and individuals on avoiding a range of pandemic-related scams Other agencies provide awareness on industry-specific scams For example the Department of Health and Human Services provides awareness on testing treatment and Medicare-related scams the Treasury Department’s Inspector General warns about tax-related fraud and the Social Security Administration warns about scams related to Social Security benefits Efforts from DOJ and other entities to counter COVID-19-related fraud involve both prevention e g awareness campaigns and response e g investigations activities As policymakers examine the federal government’s efforts to stop these scams they may question the potential effects of agencies’ investments in both prevention and response activities on reducing the 50 For more information on the NCFT A see https www ncfta net 51 For more information on InfraGard see https www infragard org U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE “ ICE HSI launches Operation Stolen Promise ” press release April 15 2020 52 U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE “ ICE HSI El Paso investigating COVID-19 related fraud such as unauthorized test kits face masks diluted cleaning solutions anti-viral products ” press release May 7 2020 53 54 See U S Secret Service testimony before the U S Congress Senate Committee on the Judiciary COVID-19 Fraud Law Enforcement’s Response to Those Exploiting the Pandemic 116 th Cong 2 nd sess June 9 2020 55 For more information on agencies providing information about scams and fraud see https www usa gov coronavirus Congressional Research Service 9 COVID-19 Department of Justice Enforcement Against Scams prevalence and impacts of pandemic-related fraud Relatedly they may look to how the agencies themselves are evaluating the effects of the resources they have placed toward countering these scams Author Information Kristin Finklea Specialist in Domestic Security Disclaimer This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service CRS CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role CRS Reports as a work of the United States Government are not subject to copyright protection in the United States Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS However as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or material from a third party you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material Congressional Research Service R46461 · VERSION 1 · NEW 10