Computer and internet fraud covers a wide range of criminal activities, including online scams and other activities intended to trick someone into giving the perpetrator money, financial details, personal injury, or other items of value. The Internet Crime Complaint Center receives an average of 758,000 complaints of Internet scams each year. In 2023, 880,418 complaints were filed, totaling $12.5 billion in losses.
If you are charged with internet fraud, a Seattle criminal defense lawyer can develop a defense strategy. A defense your lawyer may use is a lack of malicious intent to commit online scams and internet fraud.
What Is Malicious Intent in Online Scams?
Proving malicious intent for a federal computer crime is essential to the prosecution’s case. Malicious intent for computer crimes refers to the defendant’s deliberate intent to commit an unlawful act using a computer or to cause harm. Malicious intent distinguishes the defendant’s intentional criminal acts from an accident.
Evidence the prosecution may use to prove malicious intent for online scams includes, but is not limited to:
- The nature of the action by the defendant can speak to the defendant’s intentions
- Digital communications that imply or discuss a premeditated plan to use computers to commit scams
- Testimony from digital forensics experts and cybersecurity experts explain how an online scam was committed and the defendant’s involvement in the crime
- Digital footprints are used to trace the defendant’s actions online to tie them to the online scam, including login credentials, IP addresses, timestamps, etc.
- Establishing a pattern of behavior with evidence of previous online scams committed by the defendant
The prosecution must demonstrate that the defendant had the intent and knowledge to perform the criminal acts. It can be challenging for the prosecution to prove malicious intent because it involves proving the defendant’s state of mind when the crime was committed.
Preparing a Defense Challenging Malicious Intent for Online Scams
A criminal defense lawyer challenges the digital evidence. They may allege the evidence was manipulated or obscured. Some of the information may be incomplete because evidence has been deleted. Encryption can make proving malicious intent more challenging by hiding the origin of the data.
The act of interpreting a person’s intent from their online action is subjective. Therefore, attorneys point to ambiguous actions to argue that the defendant’s actions were an accident or part of a routine. A single action could have multiple motives, making it more difficult to prove malicious intent.
A defense attorney creates reasonable doubt by presenting alternative explanations for what appears to be malicious intent and illegal acts. The attorney challenges the interpretation and validity of the evidence.
The lawyer may present evidence and arguments that the defendant’s actions were misunderstood or accidental. Instead of being malicious intent, the defendant’s actions were not intended to commit computer fraud or other illegal acts.
Get Help with Criminal Charges for Online Scams in Washington
Convictions for engaging in online scams can be severe. If you are arrested on state or federal computer crimes, you need experienced legal counsel to help you fight the charges. Call Jennifer Horwitz Law to discuss your situation during a confidential consultation with a Seattle criminal defense lawyer.