New Jersey installs cybercrime unit

The task force includes a specially trained Incident Response Unit which aims, using high-tech equipment, is to handle malware threats and attacks.

"Computers and the internet are the new frontier of crime," former state Attorney General Peter C. Harvey said in a statement earlier this month. "Increasingly, both adults and children are being victimized by con-men and predators using internet fraud schemes and chat rooms. We will protect the many cybercrime victims who log on to the internet each day."

Realizing the task force cannot promptly respond to every reported incident, Harvey also announced the formation of a training committee responsible for teaching county and local authorities effective ways to investigate and respond to cyber incidents.

"Community outreach forums and speaking engagements will help the task force do that," Harvey said.

The integrated task force will include staff from the state Division of Criminal Justice, the State Police Digital Technology Investigations Unit and the State Police Cybercrimes Unit.

The state witnessed an increase in cybercrime incidents last year, Harvey said.

In a well-known case, 17-year-old Jasmine Singh was sentenced to five years in state prison after he was hired to launch Denial of Service attacks against an online merchant who sells retro sports jerseys.

An online competitor hired Singh, who also was ordered to pay $35,000 in restitution, to attack the site.