Times have changed. And so has crime.
“The bank robbery of yesterday was going into a bank, breaking in, taking a lot of money,” says Anthony E. Zuiker, one of the creators, writers and executive producers of the various incarnations of CBS’s CSI crime shows. According to Zuiker, the bank robbery of tomorrow will be a cyber crime – one that involves “taking three cents out of your account” – and millions of others.
The growing danger of cyber crime is the inspiration behind CSI: Cyber. The rookie drama series casts Patricia Arquette as Special Agent Avery Ryan, the head of the FBI’s Cyber Crime Division, which investigates high-tech criminal activity across the country. Peter MacNicol plays Ryan’s supervisor, Assistant Deputy Director Simon Sifter, while James Van Der Beek dons the role of Agent Elijah Mundo. Populating the rest of the team: Charley Koontz as shy cyber expert Daniel Krumitz, Hayley Kiyoko as social-media whiz Raven Ramirez and Shad Moss as Brody Nelson, a convicted hacker who constantly proves that a guy who has been there can be a big help in busting those who are still there.
According to Zuiker, CSI: Cyber has a goal of providing “a level of entertainment and also ‘edu-tainment.’” And so, the series is constantly teaching us all to be more careful with anything we do that involves computers, the Internet, smartphones, apps, WiFi, you name it. Above all else, says Zuiker, it’s important to “practice proper network hygiene.”
Although the future of CSI: Cyber is unclear – the series has not yet been renewed by CBS – the show’s message didn’t take long to hit its mark.
And so, with a bit of help from a few cast members, here are five high-tech lessons to be learned from the series:
1. Stick to taxicabs rather than a unregulated driver services that use a smartphone app.
OK, this one is a bit of a stretch. But, hey, as Episode 3 (“Killer En Route”) showed us, you may not know if the person who shows up to give you a ride is a legitimate driver … or a serial killer.
2. Don’t e-mail or text anything that you wouldn’t say to somebody’s face.
In other words, scale back your computer use. “My computer and I have broken up,” Koontz admitted to reporters in Los Angeles back in January. Doing the show has made him “more aware of what you’re putting out or not even putting out – the stuff that you’re having in private conversations with people.”
3. Appliances and accessories? Keep them simple.
As Episode 4 (“Fire Code”) illustrated, high-tech arsonists can remotely manipulate printers and coffeemakers to start fires. “Do we have to have every device WiFi-enabled?” Arquette says, referring to that episode. “Do we really have to have our coffee maker WiFi-enabled? We might want to think about the products we’re using and how they can be changed and keeping them a little more low-tech.”
4. Keep an eye on that camera.
Whether it’s the camera on a baby monitor, a laptop computer or a Smart TV, that lens pointing at you could be trouble. “I’ve been learning a lot,” explains Kiyoko. “I feel more educated about, you know, what kind of a password I’m going to put on my WiFi – and where my camera is angled on my laptop.”
5. Make sure your WiFi network is secured with a strong password.
As Avery tells two arson victims in Episode 4, “it’s as important as the lock on your front door.” It’s also the big message relayed in almost every episode of CSI Cyber. Unsecured WiFi networks are dangerous. And the more elaborate you make your password on your home network, the better the chances that it will protect you – and everything close to you.
CSI: Cyber – CBS – Wednesdays
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Photo: Randee St. Nicholas/CBS © 2015 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.
