The research goals are to determine the current and emerging forms of criminality involving telecommunications systems and the organizational and regulatory shortcomings that aid the commission of this illegality. The research is also focusing on difficulties in the detection, investigation, and prosecution of this form of crime, typical outcomes of the legal process, and countermeasures to reduce the future risk of this crime without inflicting collateral harm. The analysis is focusing on the theft of telecommunications services, criminal conspiracies, copyright infringement, dissemination of offensive materials, electronic money laundering, electronic vandalism, telemarketing fraud, electronic eavesdropping, and fraud in electronic funds transfers. Enforcement challenges result from the size of the problem and from extraterritorial issues. Countermeasures being examined include self-help, commercial solutions, self-regulation, citizen co-production of law enforcement, and traditional law enforcement. It remains to be determined whether cooperative efforts to address telecommunications crime will achieve a better record of success than has occurred for other enduring global issues. 9 references