Evaluate the effectiveness of government strategies, both domestically and
internationally, to fight crime in cyberspace.
With technological progress, people’s desire for achieving financial benefit by evading moral
and legal principles does not dissipate. Digital technology has given rise to huge opportunities
for business, governments and society, but the digital and technological revolution of the 21 st
century sparked the transformation of crime, which has increasingly shifted into the cybersphere,
which demanded higher regulation and legal response. However, individual government
legislation has not been able to fully eliminate the prevalence of cybercrime, due to the
possibility of conducting cybercrime operations internationally, given the high rate of
accessibility to the internet from worldwide locations. Hence, international organisation has
become necessary to combat the danger and harm of cybercrime, casting doubt over the success
of government and international responses in relation to cybercrime.
Cybercrime is any criminal activity conducted by means of a computer and a network. This area
of criminal activity can be subdivided into two branches: crimes directed at computers or
information communication technology (ICT) systems, and crimes where digital technology is
an integral part of the offence. Generally, developments in ICT that have beneficial purposes, for
instance, anonymity, complex encryption and high internet speed, also allow fruitful possibilities
for crime, requiring future-proof regulation and adaptability of the legal system to technological
progress.
At the end of the second decade of the 21 st century, the internet has 4.66 billion active users,
which is 65.6% of the world population. This includes the recent surges in cheap internet and
digital device access in developing countries, in which there may already be high rates of
criminal activity. Hence, according to Kaspersky Labs, Iran, Algeria and Bangladesh are on top
of the list of countries attacked by ransomware in 2019. Furthermore, in terms of geographical
distribution, Australia, the USA and Saudi Arabia were the hardest hit by ransomware in 2020,
according to Impreva’s Cyberthreat Defence Report. In 2007 it was found that malicious hackers
were attacking systems at a rate of one successful attack every 39 seconds, while in 2020, the
huge growth in cybercrime was seen, as the attacks increased to 1 every 1.12 seconds.
Additionally, ransomware attacks cost the US $915 million in 2020, and for Australia, $214
million in 2020. This international threat should be subject to maximal legal pressure
domestically and internationally to not permit crime to affect key sectors of our economy and the
safety of individuals and organisations.
The most common types of cybercrime include phishing, the use of fake emails to obtain
personal information from victims, identity theft, ransomware, malware and many more.
Malware is software that is designed to disrupt, damage or gain unauthorised access to a
computer system. Ransomware is a type of malware, which once penetrating a system or device,
makes its files unusable or encrypted, then demanding payment in return for these files. In
Australia, the most common types of cybercrime are identity theft and online fraud, making up
40% of reports.
internationally, to fight crime in cyberspace.
With technological progress, people’s desire for achieving financial benefit by evading moral
and legal principles does not dissipate. Digital technology has given rise to huge opportunities
for business, governments and society, but the digital and technological revolution of the 21 st
century sparked the transformation of crime, which has increasingly shifted into the cybersphere,
which demanded higher regulation and legal response. However, individual government
legislation has not been able to fully eliminate the prevalence of cybercrime, due to the
possibility of conducting cybercrime operations internationally, given the high rate of
accessibility to the internet from worldwide locations. Hence, international organisation has
become necessary to combat the danger and harm of cybercrime, casting doubt over the success
of government and international responses in relation to cybercrime.
Cybercrime is any criminal activity conducted by means of a computer and a network. This area
of criminal activity can be subdivided into two branches: crimes directed at computers or
information communication technology (ICT) systems, and crimes where digital technology is
an integral part of the offence. Generally, developments in ICT that have beneficial purposes, for
instance, anonymity, complex encryption and high internet speed, also allow fruitful possibilities
for crime, requiring future-proof regulation and adaptability of the legal system to technological
progress.
At the end of the second decade of the 21 st century, the internet has 4.66 billion active users,
which is 65.6% of the world population. This includes the recent surges in cheap internet and
digital device access in developing countries, in which there may already be high rates of
criminal activity. Hence, according to Kaspersky Labs, Iran, Algeria and Bangladesh are on top
of the list of countries attacked by ransomware in 2019. Furthermore, in terms of geographical
distribution, Australia, the USA and Saudi Arabia were the hardest hit by ransomware in 2020,
according to Impreva’s Cyberthreat Defence Report. In 2007 it was found that malicious hackers
were attacking systems at a rate of one successful attack every 39 seconds, while in 2020, the
huge growth in cybercrime was seen, as the attacks increased to 1 every 1.12 seconds.
Additionally, ransomware attacks cost the US $915 million in 2020, and for Australia, $214
million in 2020. This international threat should be subject to maximal legal pressure
domestically and internationally to not permit crime to affect key sectors of our economy and the
safety of individuals and organisations.
The most common types of cybercrime include phishing, the use of fake emails to obtain
personal information from victims, identity theft, ransomware, malware and many more.
Malware is software that is designed to disrupt, damage or gain unauthorised access to a
computer system. Ransomware is a type of malware, which once penetrating a system or device,
makes its files unusable or encrypted, then demanding payment in return for these files. In
Australia, the most common types of cybercrime are identity theft and online fraud, making up
40% of reports.
