The Internet is a connection of computers around the world via a network. Its origin dates back to the 1960s, when the US military used it for research purposes, but it became more accessible to the public starting in the late 1980s. The World Wide Web was created in 1989 and browsers first appeared in the early 1990s. Over the past 24 years, the Internet has allowed people to shop, play, research, communicate and do business online. It has also become cheaper and faster to perform different tasks. Although the Internet has brought immeasurable good to society, it has also dominated people's lives and led to a range of cybercrimes. According to Nicholas Carr in his book The Shallows: How the Internet is Changing the Way we Think, Read and Remember (Carr, 2010). He wonders if the Internet has done more harm than good. People use the Internet every day to exchange precise information, and personal data such as credit cards, passwords, and Social Security numbers constantly travel across the network from one computer to another. Thanks to the security measures put in place on the Internet, personal information remains confidential. But unfortunately, criminals have adapted to technological innovations and today, more and more people are victims of cybercrime. The Internet has had profound effects on the public, both positive and negative. In this article, we will examine how access to personal information has led to an increase in online and offline crimes. The essay will particularly focus on e-commerce and piracy. For years, cybercriminals have used bank statements, rejected credit cards, tax bills and other bills (normally found in trash) to access personal information and assume false identities.... ...at middle of paper......The internet benefits everyone, there are unscrupulous individuals who will always look for ways to make money through illicit activities, and these are hackers. Piracy has affected all sectors of the Internet and has also contributed to offline crimes. ReferencesCarr, N. (2010). The Shallows: How the Internet is changing the way we think, read and remember .Interpol. (2013). The changing nature of cybercrime. Washington. Kelly, H. (2012). Police are adopting social media as a combat tool. Lexis, N. (2011). Cybercrime among us. II, 12-15. Wee, H. (2014). How the threat of cybercrime is increased for Mainstreet. CNBC. Rowland, M. (2012). The new face of crime. Kelly, H. (nd). Police are adopting social media as a combat tool. Accessed April 2014 on CNN: http://edition.cnn.com/2012/08/30/tech/social-media/fighting-crime-social-media/