Technical Investigations Division

USPS OIG Investigations

The Technical Investigations Division of the U.S. Postal Service Office of the Inspector General (OIG) is comprised of three specialized groups including the Computer Crimes Unit, Polygraph Team, and Technical Operations. These components are the backbone of the technical investigative support for the OIG investigations.

Computer Crimes Unit
As the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) information infrastructure expands and the number of products and services available over the Internet increases, the Postal Service faces increased exposure to computer crime. Using this digital infrastructure, often referred to as the third largest in the United States, the Computer Crimes Unit conducts digital crime investigations and provides computer forensic support to a variety of USPS OIG investigations. The 16-member Unit is composed of forensic examiners, who are special agents and non-agents with specialized information technology training. These digital forensic examiners partner with the USPS Computer Incident Response Team and the Postal Service Chief Information Office personnel in the forensic collection and analysis of digital data. Additionally, the Computer Crimes Unit combats computer intrusions and crimes to ensure the Postal Service’s networks and databases remain secure and that all digital trails are exploited in the support of the OIG’s investigative mission.

During fiscal year 2007, the Computer Crimes Unit provided digital forensic analyses in support of 325 investigations.

Polygraph Team
The Polygraph Team consists of technically trained special agents who provide polygraph examinations and interviews in support of investigative cases. During fiscal year 2007, the Polygraph Team administered 97 polygraph examinations. These technical interviews provided strong value-added support to OIG investigations throughout the fiscal year.

Technical Operations
The Technical Operations group consists of technical operations officers who specialize in radio communication and high technical audio and video surveillance. The group is responsible for all the digital video surveillance for supporting internal mail theft and financial fraud investigations. Currently, this team is conducting a significant revitalization of the video surveillance systems throughout the Postal Service’s infrastructure. Technical equipment and services provided by Technical Operations provides dependable technical infrastructure support for successfully identifying and prosecuting crimes committed by postal employees.

These new and refined investigative technologies will continue to be force-multipliers for the OIG in the pursuit of efficiencies and excellence in investigative endeavors.

The popular television show, 24, has its CTU; however, the OIG has its CCU (Computer Crimes Unit). Click on the following link to learn how this specialized OIG unit detects fraud, waste, and abuse on the Postal Service computer infrastructure: http://www.postmasters.org/publications/pmadvocate/OIG%20Story.pdf The article “Cracking Computer Crime Cases the CCU Way,” was published in the Postmaster ADVOCATE, December 2007, Volume 113, Number 11, page 23.