Netherlands - The Central Bureau of Statistics' Security Monitor, published today, shows that nearly 2.5 million Dutch people aged 15 and older became victims of online scams in the past year. These include things like purchase fraud, hacking, phishing and cyberbullying. What is actually the psychological impact of online crime on victims?
Criminals are getting smarter and smarter, shifting their purview from the physical world to the Internet. CBS figures show that fewer and fewer Dutch people have been victims of traditional forms of crime, such as burglary and theft, violence and vandalism. In contrast, the number of cases of scams, hacking and other online crime is increasing.
What is the psychological impact of online crime for victims, senior cybercrime analyst Jildau Borwell asks in her doctoral research commissioned by the police. 'Little scientific research has yet been done on victimization of online crime. Unlike traditional crime, for example, not much is yet known about how victims of online crime feel underneath. And that while online crime is now as common as traditional forms of crime. Perhaps in some cases online crimes should even be classified as high impact crimes, such as robberies and residential burglaries. For example, victims of online crime sometimes lose their entire savings in one fell swoop. In traditional crime, you won't easily encounter this.'
Based on the initial findings, it recommends that police consider the crimes that cause the most psychological impact in prioritizing online crime. For victims of person-centered online crime, such as threats and stalking, it makes sense to focus more on emotional support. While with financial online crime, including fraud and hacking, the need is more about increasing victims' knowledge of online safety and prevention of repeat victimization. The research also has a follow-up: In the next step, Borwell contrasts the impact of online crime with traditional crime, and looks at the needs of victims and their experience with the police.
Remarkably, less than half of the victims report online crime and only 20 percent report it. The consequences, dejection, sadness and shame among victims are great. Of all victims of online crime, 47 percent have reported what happened to them to an agency or within their own circle, 19 percent have reported it to the police.
In its approach, the police cooperate with many parties at home and abroad. In the Netherlands there are four tracks. The government invests in detection and scientific research. In addition to detection, the police and justice system are increasingly focusing on preventing and disrupting cybercrime. This is done together with (international) partners. Another component is that detection is strengthened and the government supports victims to prevent them from becoming repeat victims of cybercrime. There are special teams against bank fraud (Electronic Crimes Taskforce), child pornography (Team to Combat Child Pornography and Child Sex Tourism) and high-tech crime, or the most advanced forms of cybercrime (Team High Tech Crime). Internationally, the Dutch police cooperate in investigations with Europol, Interpol and the FBI, among others.
