Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Transnational organised cyber crime: distinguishing threat from reality

  • Published:
Crime, Law and Social Change Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Cybercrime has become an integral part of the transnational threat landscape and conjures up pressing images of nefarious and increasingly complex online activity. More recently, the concept of ‘organised crime’ has been attributed to cybercriminality. There has been subsequent disagreement and confusion concerning whether such crime is a derivation of traditional organised crime or an evolution of such crime within the online space. This opaque state of affairs has been exacerbated by the relative lack of clear evidence attesting to and supporting either scenario. Technological advances have always been used to the advantage of the criminal fraternity. The crucial question that remains is whether those advances have merely facilitated the commission of physical crime or whether in fact they have led to the creation of a new wave of traditional, but virtual, organised crime.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Majid Y. (2005). The novelty of ‘cybercrime’: An assessment in light of routine activity theory. European Journal of Criminology, 2(4), 407–427:408.

  2. Grabosky, P. N. (2001). Virtual criminality: Old wine in new bottles? Social and Legal Studies, 10(2), 243–249:243

  3. Nisbett, C (2002). New directions in cyber-crime. White Paper, QineticQ, http://www.qinetiq.com/home/security/information_and_network_security/white_paper_index.Par.0012.File.pdf

  4. Wall, D. S.(2004). The internet as a conduit for criminal activity. In A. Pattavina (Ed.), Information technology and the criminal justices system (Chapter 4:77). Sage

  5. IBM (2006). IBM B2B security survey: Australia/Global summary report (provided to author by IBM)

  6. Article 2 (a) of the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime defines an ‘organised criminal group’ as a ‘...structured group of three or more persons, existing for a period of time and acting in concert with the aim of committing one or more serious crimes or offences established in accordance with [the] Convention, in order to obtain, directly or indirectly, a financial or other material benefit.’

  7. Council of Europe (2004). Organised crime situation report: Focus on the threat of cybercrime, http://www.coe.int/T/E/Legal_Affairs/Legal_co-operation/Combating_economic_crime/8_Organised_crime/Documents/Organised%20Crime%20Situation%20Report%202004.pdf

  8. Cited in Naylor, R. T. (2000). Expert panel on emerging crimes:4, Research and Statistics Division, Department of Justice, http://www.justice.gc.ca/en/ps/rs/rep/2002/expertpanel.pdf

  9. Cited in McMillan, R (2006). FBI: Cybercriminals taking clues from Mafia, http://www.pcworld.com/article/id, 126664-c,cybercrime/article.html

  10. Ibid

  11. Cited in Wired News (2006), Cybercrime is getting organized, http://www.wired.com/news/technology/internet/0,71793-0.html?tw=rss.index

  12. Cited in Thomson, I (2003). NHTCU issues stark cyber-crime warning, http://www.managementconsultancy.co.uk/vnunet/news/2122171/nhtcu-issues-stark-c

  13. Nisbett, op. cit

  14. U.S. Congress (1951). Special Committee on Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce

  15. U.S. Congress (1963). Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Committee on Government Operations

  16. A meeting of crime Bosses at the home of Joseph Barbara in Appalachian, New York, in 1957

  17. UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (2001). Conclusions of the study on effective measures to prevent and control high-technology and computer-related crime, 10th Session, 8–17 May, http://www.unodc.org/pdf/crime/10_commission/4e.pdf

  18. Davis, R and Pease, K (2001). Crime, technology and the future, Security Journal, 59–61, Perpetuity Press Ltd.

  19. Naylor, op.cit

  20. Ibid: 4

  21. Zittrain, J. L. (2006). The generative internet, Harvard Law Review (119:7), http://www.harvardlawreview.org/issues/119/may06/may06.shtml

  22. Sussman, M. A. (1999). The critical challenges from international high-tech and computer-related crime at the millennium. Duke Journal of Comparative and International Law, 9, 451–489):451

  23. Miller, R, Michalski, W, & Stevens, B (1998). The promises and perils of 21st century technology: An overview of the issues in 21st century technologies. Promises and perils of a dynamic future, OECD.

  24. Symantec (2006). Symantec internet security threat report: Trends for January 06–June 06, http://www.symantec.com/specprog/threatreport/ent-whitepaper_symantec_internet_security_threat_report_x_09_2006.en-us.pdf

  25. Symantec (2006). Cybercrime: A disturbing trend http://www.symantec.com/home_homeoffice/library/article.jsp?aid=cybercrime_a_disturbing_trend

  26. CipherTrust (2005). Phishing: Organized crime for the 21st century, http://www.ciphertust.com

  27. UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (2001), op. cit

  28. Morris, S. (2004). The future of netcrime now: Part 1 - Threats and challenges, Home Office.

  29. Millman, R. (2005). IT managers fail to protect mobile devices, SC Magazine, 11 November, http://www.scmagazine.com/asia/news/article/527520/it-managers-fail-protect-mobile-devices/

  30. Brenner, op.cit, 24

  31. Nisbett, op.cit

  32. Brenner, op. cit, 24

  33. Nisbett, op. cit

  34. Ibid

  35. Cressey, D. R. (1969). Theft of a nation: The structure and operations of organized crime in America. New York: Harper & Row.

  36. Joseph V, A mafia member, testified before the McClellan Committee (n.17 supra). Details of his life may be found in Maas, P. (1968), The Valachi papers, New York: G.P. Putnam

  37. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2002). Results of a pilot study of forty selected organized crime groups in sixteen countries, http://www.unodc.org/pdf/crime/publications/Pilot_survey.pdf

  38. Nisbett, op.cit

  39. Olson, J. L. (2004). The threat of systematic and organized cybercrime and information warfare: 17 http://www.american.edu/traccc/resources/publications/students/olson01.pdf

  40. Europol (2006). Organised Crime Threat Assessment 2006: 18 http://www.europol.europa.eu/publications/OCTA/OCTA2006.pdf

  41. McAfee (2006). McAfee virtual criminology report: Organised crime and the internet, http://www.softmart.com/mcafee/docs/McAfee%20NA%20Virtual%20Criminology%20Report.pdf

  42. Williams, P. (2001). Organized crime and cybercrime: Synergies, trends and responses. Global Issues 6(2), 25, US Department of State, http://usinfo.state.gov/journals/itgic/0801/ijge/ijge0801.pdf

  43. Clarberg, B. (2003). Cyber crime, Paper presented at the conference on international cooperation on transnational crime, The Hague, 9–10 October (unpublished)

  44. See, for example, McCusker, R. (2006) Organised crime and terrorism: Convergence or separation?, ECPR Standing group on organised crime newsletter (5:2) 2–5 http://www.essex.ac.uk/ecpr/standinggroups/crime/documents/SGOC_Vol5_2.pdf

  45. Olson, op.cit: 15

  46. Ibid:16

  47. Nisbett, op.cit

  48. Brenner, op.cit: 39

  49. Council of Europe (2005). Organised crime situation report: Focus on the threat of economic crime, http://www.coe.int/t/e/legal_affairs/legal_co-operation/combating_economic_crime/8_Organised_crime/Documents/Report2005E.pdf

  50. Brenner, op. cit: 45

  51. Ibid

  52. Ibid: 47

  53. Clarberg: op.cit

  54. Williams, op.cit: 23

  55. Grabosky, op.cit

  56. Williams, op.cit: 23

  57. See ‘Introduction’ at p.1 supra

  58. Williams, op.cit: 22

  59. Ibid

  60. Council of Europe (2004), op.cit: 169

  61. Cited in Williams (2001), op.cit: 23

  62. Morris, op.cit: 28

  63. Parizo, E.B. (2005). Busted: The inside story of ‘Operation Firewall’, Security.com, http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/originalContent/0,289142,sid14_gci1146949,00.html

  64. Cited in Parizo, op.cit

  65. Council of Europe, op.cit: 118

  66. Ibid: 119

  67. Ibid: 121

  68. Europol, op.cit: 18

  69. Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada (2005). http://www.cisc.gc.ca/annual_reports/annual_report2005/document/annual_report_2005_e.pdf :15

  70. Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Royal Canadian Mounted Police (2006). 2006 Canada/US organized crime threat assessment, http://www.psepc.gc.ca/prg/le/_fl/2006_Canada-US_OC-TA_en.pdf

  71. Ibid: 13

  72. Ibid: 5

  73. Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada (2005). 2005 Annual report on organized crime in Canada: 13, http://www.cisc.gc.ca/annual_reports/annual_report2005/document/annual_report_2005_e.pdf

  74. Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada (2006), op.cit: 9

  75. Europol, op.cit: 18

  76. Serious Organised Crime Agency (2006). The United Kingdom threat assessment of serious organised crime 2006/7: 23 http://www.soca.gov.uk/assessPublications/downloads/threat_assess_unclass_250706.pdf

  77. Hynds, L (2005). Organized crime offers rent-a-zombie deals, http://www.spamdailynews.com/publish/Organized_crime_offers_rent-a-zombie_deals.asp

  78. Financial Action Task Force (2006). Report on new payment methods, http://www.fatf-gafi.org/dataoecd/30/47/37627240.pdf

  79. Kubic, T. T. (2001). The FBI’s perspective on the cyber crime problem. Testimony before the House Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Crime, http://www.fbi.gov/congress/congress01/kubic061201.htm

  80. Griffiths, P (2006). Internet gangs hiring students for cybercrime, http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/3/story.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10414819

  81. McAfee (2006) op.cit

  82. Stone, G (2005). Microsoft partners with Australian law enforcement agencies to combat cyber crime, Microsoft press release, http://www.ahtcc.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/13952/MR050330_ForensicWorkshop.pdf

  83. CNN (2001). FBI warns companies about Russian hacker attacks, http://archives.cnn.com/2001/TECH/internet/03/08/hacker.attacks/index.html

  84. McCafferty, D. (2004). Organized cyber crime, http://www.thewhir.com/features/organized-cybercrime.cfm

  85. ibid

  86. Fisher, D. (2006). Feds court infosec pros in fight against cybercrime, http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com.au/topics/article.asp?DocID=1207228

  87. Cited in Ilett, D (2006). Mafia insiders infiltrating firms, U.K. cops warn, http://news.com.com/Mafia+insiders+infiltrating+firms%2C+U.K.+cops+warn/2100-7348_3-6064954.html?tag=mainstry

  88. Horn, P. (2006). It’s time to arrest cyber crime

  89. Cited in Thomson, I. (2002). Organised crime goes digital, http://www.crime-research.org/news/2002/12/Mess1201.htm

  90. Ibid

  91. Association for Payment Clearing Services (2006). A vulnerability and threat assessment of authentication mechanisms for internet based financial services: 2006 review, London

  92. McCusker, R. (2007). The ultimate work at home scam. Money Laundering Intelligence (14)

  93. McAfee (2005). McAfee virtual criminology report: North American study into organized crime and the internet, http://www.mcafee.com/us/local_content/misc/mcafee_na_virtual_criminology_report.pdf

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Australian Institute of Criminology, Canberra, Australia

    Rob McCusker

Authors
  1. Rob McCusker
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rob McCusker.

Additional information

Rob McCusker is a Research Analyst in Transnational Crime, Australian Institute of Criminology.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

McCusker, R. Transnational organised cyber crime: distinguishing threat from reality. Crime Law Soc Change 46, 257–273 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10611-007-9059-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10611-007-9059-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation