A new Systemic Taxonomy of Cyber Criminal activity

Cybercrime commonly refers to a broad range of different criminal activities that involve computers and information systems, either as primary tools or as primary targets. Cybercrime Science combines the methodology of Crime Science with the technology of Information Security. The few existing taxonomies of Cybercrime provide only general insights into the benefits of information structures; they are neither complete nor elaborated in a systemic manner to provide a proper framework guided by real system-principles. The main problem with such taxonomies is the inability to dynamically upgrade, which is why there is no timely cybersecurity actions. The current and past approaches were based mainly on the technical nature of cyberattacks and such approaches classified the impact of the activities from a criminological perspective. In this article, we present a systemic taxonomy of Cybercrime, based on definitions of the field items and the related data specifications. We develop a new method for estimating the fractal dimension of networks to explore a new taxonomy of Cybercrime activity. This method can serve to dynamically upgrade taxonomy and thus accelerate the prevention of cybercrime

Can artificial intelligence, RegTech and CharityTech provide effective solutions for anti-money laundering and counter-terror financing initiatives in charitable fundraising

Purpose: Artificial intelligence has had a major impact on organisations from Banking through to Law Firms. The rate at which technology has developed in terms of tasks that are complex, technical and time consuming has been astounding. The purpose of this article is to explore the solutions that AI, RegTech and CharityTech provide to charities in navigating the vast amount of anti-money laundering and counter-terror finance legislation in the United Kingdom; so that they comply with the requirements and mitigate the potential risk they face but also develop a more coherent and streamlined set of actions. Design/methodology/approach: The subject is approached through the analysis of data, literature and, domestic and international regulation. The first part of the article explores the current obligations and risks charities face, these are then, in the second part, set against the examination of potential technological solutions as at August 2020. Findings: It is suggested that charities underestimate the importance of the nature and size of the threat posed to them, this is significant, as demonstrated, given the growing size and impact of the sector. Technological solutions are suggested to combat the issues charities face. Originality: The work is original because it is the first to create the notion of CharityTech, and to specifically explore what technological advances can assist charities in meeting the regulatory compliance challenge

A systematic survey of online data mining technology intended for law enforcement

As an increasing amount of crime takes on a digital aspect, law enforcement bodies must tackle an online environment generating huge volumes of data. With manual inspections becoming increasingly infeasible, law enforcement bodies are optimising online investigations through data-mining technologies. Such technologies must be well designed and rigorously grounded, yet no survey of the online data-mining literature exists which examines their techniques, applications and rigour. This article remedies this gap through a systematic mapping study describing online data-mining literature which visibly targets law enforcement applications, using evidence-based practices in survey making to produce a replicable analysis which can be methodologically examined for deficiencies

THE ROLE OF FORENSIC ACCOUNTING IN MITIGATING AGAINST CYBER CRIMES DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ERA: ISSUES AND PERSPECTIVES

The advent of covid-19 pandemic not only create health challenges but also created difficulties in the conduct of economic activities across the world. Due to restrictions imposed as a result of the pandemic, the physical movements of individuals were restricted. Hence business transactions were conducted online through Internet services. Logistics services were adopted to move goods from the location where they were produced to where they were consumed. Payments or settlements for the products were conducted through the internet and this led to the astronomical increase in Internet fraud which culminated in the loss of valuable assets. This study was therefore conducted to examine how forensic accounting tools were adopted to investigate, track, and recover the lost assets and restore the victims to their original state prior to the loss, as well, as how the perpetrators were made to face appropriate sanctions. The study used a descriptive research design as the data for the study were obtained from secondary sources. The data were obtained through questionnaires that were administered to the personnel of agencies responsible for the management and control of cybercrimes in Nigeria and were analysed using percentages and correlation. The results of the analysis show that there was a significant effect of forensic accounting mechanisms in the management and control of cybercrimes. It also indicated that the application of forensic accounting tools was effective in obtaining admissible evidence in court. Furthermore, the result also showed a strong effect on the recovery of stolen assets.  The study concluded that increased deployment of forensic accounting tools had an effect in reducing internet fraud, and provided enough evidence for prosecution of criminals and the recovery of stolen assets. The study recommends strict monitoring of Internet transactions as well as the adoption of forensic accounting tools as critical tools for tracking and recovery of stolen assets. The study apart from contributing to expanding knowledge on forensic accounting also addresses the fears of those who intend to carry on transactions through the Internet. Also, the recommendations will provide the roadmap towards addressing the problems of internet fraud

Countering Expansion and Organization of Terrorism in Cyberspace

Terrorists use cyberspace and social media technology to create fear and spread violent ideologies, which pose a significant threat to public security. Researchers have documented the importance of the application of law and regulation in dealing with the criminal activities perpetrated through the aid of computers in cyberspace. Using routine activity theory, this study assessed the effectiveness of technological approaches to mitigating the expansion and organization of terrorism in cyberspace. The study aligned with the purpose area analysis objective of classifying and assessing potential terrorist threats to preempt and mitigate the attacks. Data collection included document content analysis of the open-source documents, government threat assessments, legislation, policy papers, and peer-reviewed academic literature and semistructured interviews with fifteen security experts in Nigeria. Yin\u27s recommended analysis process of iterative and repetitive review of materials was applied to the documents analysis, including interviews of key public and private sector individuals to identify key themes on Nigeria\u27s current effort to secure the nation\u27s cyberspace. The key findings were that the new generation of terrorists who are more technological savvy are growing, cybersecurity technologies are effective and quicker tools, and bilateral/multilateral cooperation is essential to combat the expansion of terrorism in cyberspace. The implementation of recommendations from this study will improve the security in cyberspace, thereby contributing to positive social change. The data provided may be useful to stakeholders responsible for national security, counterterrorism, law enforcement on the choice of cybersecurity technologies to confront terrorist expansion, and organization in cyberspace