Strategies and Behaviors of Cyber Deviance and Internet Trolling

As society shifts towards making social media a center focus of contemporary life, trolls, are continually developing distractive dialogue. Although trolls may not be deviant in the sense of harsh online crimes, trolls do cause problems within online communities. Jonathan Bishop (2014) and Whitney Phillips (2015) have developed a foundation of internet troll research. Bishop (2014) studied the behaviors of trolls, while Philips (2015) investigated their techniques. However, neither researcher sampled from an online massive multiplayer Online game. Using one of the largest online gaming communities, World of Warcraft, this research examines the techniques and behaviors of trolling. Trolling was found to mainly be a response mechanism that consisted of heavy mockery and improvisation. This study indicates that trolls successfully disrupt and reroute conversations using a variety of mechanisms and techniques. General findings indicate that, while trolls may distract and derail public conversations, a clear majority of the activity reflected more juvenile and irritating behavior rather than significant threats to society. The research of strategies and behaviors of cyber deviance examined in this work creates a foundation for future examinations of trolling behavior. While this study inspects the strategies, future studies look to reveal the goals of trolls. Although trolling may be considered deviant, it has become an important aspect of the online culture that needs to be investigated

Cyber Intelligence and OSINT: Developing Mitigation Techniques Against Cybercrime Threats on Social Media

Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) involve the collection or processes of gathering data and profiling of publicly available private and public sector information sources about individuals and business intelligence purposes. These sources includes internet and other social media platforms such as Facebook, emails, twitters, what’s apps for. Much debate and research has been done on the threats, vulnerabilities and the impact of the use of social media sites but this study is to minimize bias. Objective: To systematic review and synthesis findings on current empirical research topic on cyber intelligence and open source intelligence profiling to identifying both the threats and vulnerabilities on online social networks for mitigation purposes. Methods: A systematic narrative review of research using rigorous searching on online databases. The results were then subjected to review using a quantitative and quality appraisal tool and a narrative synthesis methodology. A theoretical framework was developed for the synthesis using concepts from the literature ‘The Effectiveness of Neighborhood Watch’. A Campbell Systematic Review Results: The systematic search retrieved 18 original research papers investigating and exploring the effects of online social media technologies on open source intelligence concepts. The use of social media were reported as enhancing social cohesion among peers, improving business opportunities as information gets to customers quickly. Safe identity experimentations, OSINT and cyber intelligence social media gathering is especially vital in the modern war on terror. Understanding terrorist network topologies, crime data analysis and mining, countering improvised explosive devices. The study also highlighted potential negative impacts and threats and the effect of social engineering threats in SNSs, threats of social networking and identity crime. Vulnerabilities of HTTP header information and cookies being sent to third-party aggregators as well harmful effects of exposure to threats. Conclusion: The systematic review has revealed extraordinary evidences and contradictory concepts. It has also revealed the underlining research challenges impacting on open source intelligence. Due to the invincibility nature of social media technologies, social media platforms are constantly being used for social, business and intelligence gathering purposes but to ensure proper and advance mitigating circumstance, further research is required to gain situational awareness and appropriate counter measure

Transportation, Terrorism and Crime: Deterrence, Disruption and Resilience

Abstract: Terrorists likely have adopted vehicle ramming as a tactic because it can be carried out by an individual (or “lone wolf terrorist”), and because the skills required are minimal (e.g. the ability to drive a car and determine locations for creating maximum carnage). Studies of terrorist activities against transportation assets have been conducted to help law enforcement agencies prepare their communities, create mitigation measures, conduct effective surveillance and respond quickly to attacks. This study reviews current research on terrorist tactics against transportation assets, with an emphasis on vehicle ramming attacks. It evaluates some of the current attack strategies, and the possible mitigation or response tactics that may be effective in deterring attacks or saving lives in the event of an attack. It includes case studies that can be used as educational tools for understanding terrorist methodologies, as well as ordinary emergencies that might become a terrorist’s blueprint

The European Security Industry: A Research Agenda

The security industry can be defined, in the first instance, as the industry that produces the goods and services required to protect citizens from insecurity. Yet, this industry, as opposed to defence, has not been an area of intense research. Their boundaries are unclear and the industry is not well characterised. This paper analyses this knowledge gap and presents some ideas for a research agenda for this industry that could assist in unveiling the main features, the potential weaknesses and strengths, and the capability to solve the security needs of society in an efficient and effective way. The paper discusses a definition of this economic sector useful in setting its boundaries, and it briefly describes the main types of industries operating within the sector. It analyses methods for gathering information regarding the industry, customers, and other market agents. Finally, it outlines ways for assessing market performance in terms of the structure-conduct-performance paradigm.security industry, security market, terrorism and organised crime countermeasures, competition, market performance

2008 Annual Report of the Graduate School of Engineering and Management, Air Force Institute of Technology

The Graduate School\u27s Annual Report highlights research focus areas, new academic programs, faculty accomplishments and news, and provides top-level sponsor-funded research data and information

A Survey on Cybercrime Using Social Media

There is growing interest in automating crime detection and prevention for large populations as a result of the increased usage of social media for victimization and criminal activities. This area is frequently researched due to its potential for enabling criminals to reach a large audience. While several studies have investigated specific crimes on social media, a comprehensive review paper that examines all types of social media crimes, their similarities, and detection methods is still lacking. The identification of similarities among crimes and detection methods can facilitate knowledge and data transfer across domains. The goal of this study is to collect a library of social media crimes and establish their connections using a crime taxonomy. The survey also identifies publicly accessible datasets and offers areas for additional study in this area

Formulating a Strategy for Securing High-Speed Rail in the United States, Research Report 12-03

This report presents an analysis of information relating to attacks, attempted attacks, and plots against high-speed rail (HSR) systems. It draws upon empirical data from MTI’s Database of Terrorist and Serious Criminal Attacks Against Public Surface Transportation and from reviews of selected HSR systems, including onsite observations. The report also examines the history of safety accidents and other HSR incidents that resulted in fatalities, injuries, or extensive asset damage to examine the inherent vulnerabilities (and strengths) of HSR systems and how these might affect the consequences of terrorist attacks. The study is divided into three parts: (1) an examination of security principles and measures; (2) an empirical examination of 33 attacks against HSR targets and a comparison of attacks against HSR targets with those against non-HSR targets; and (3) an examination of 73 safety incidents on 12 HRS systems. The purpose of this study is to develop an overall strategy for HSR security and to identify measures that could be applied to HSR systems currently under development in the United States. It is hoped that the report will provide useful guidance to both governmental authorities and transportation operators of current and future HSR systems

Adopting the bottom-up approach and cluster analysis on North American and European male serial killers

This study explores the application of the FBI’s organised-disorganised classification to North-American and European male serial killers. Adopting the same method as Taylor, Lambeth, Green, Bone and Cahillane’s 2012 study, 52 crime scene criteria were used to categorise the murders committed by 25 male European and 25 male North-American serial killers. Applying content analysis, murders committed were dichotomously coded for the presence or absence of crime scene criteria using numerous secondary sources. Two separate agglomerative hierarchical cluster analyses using Ward’s method as the clustering algorithm formed two clusters for the North-American and two for the European serial killers. There were differences in the crime scene criteria for clusters between North-American and European serial murders. The ‘bottom-up’ approach resulted in clusters from the crime scene criteria demonstrating that there are problems associated with classifying traits as simply organised and disorganised. All clusters comprised of a degree of core organised traits -consistent with Canter, Alison, Alison and Wentink’s (2004) assumption that all serial killings require a degree of organisation. Further examination of frequency of occurrence measures suggests there are subtle but inherent differences between the MO of North American and European serial killers

Profiling the vendors of COVID‐19 related product on the Darknet: An observational study

Background In a time of unprecedented global change, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a surge in demand of COVID-19 vaccines and related certifications. Mainly due to supply shortages, counterfeit vaccines, fake documentation, and alleged cures to illegal portfolios, have been offered on darkweb marketplaces (DWMs) with important public health consequences. We aimed to profile key DWMs and vendors by presenting some in-depth case studies. Methods A non-systematic search for COVID-19 products was performed across 118 DWMs. Levels of activity, credibility, content, COVID-19 product listings, privacy protocols were among the features retrieved. Open web fora and other open web sources were also considered for further analysis of both functional and non functional DWMs. Collected data refers to the period between January 2020 and October 2021. Results A total of 42 relevant listings sold by 24 vendors across eight DWMs were identified. Four of these markets were active and well-established at the time of the study with good levels of credibility. COVID-19 products were listed alongside other marketplace content. Vendors had a trusted profile, communicated in English language and accepted payments in cryptocurrencies (Monero or Bitcoin). Their geographical location included the USA, Asia and Europe. While COVID-19 related goods were mostly available for regional supply, other listings were also shipped worldwide. Interpretation Findings emerging from this study rise important questions about the health safety of certain DWMs activities and encourage the development of targeted interventions to overcome such new and rapidly expanding public health threats. Funding CovSaf, National Research centre on Privacy, Harm Reduction and Adversarial Influence Online (REPHRAIN), Commonwealth Fund

Profiling the vendors of COVID‐19 related product on the Darknet: An observational study

/© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of International Society for the Study of Emerging Drugs. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)BACKGROUND: In a time of unprecedented global change, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a surge in demand of COVID-19 vaccines and related certifications. Mainly due to supply shortages, counterfeit vaccines, fake documentation, and alleged cures to illegal portfolios, have been offered on darkweb marketplaces (DWMs) with important public health consequences. We aimed to profile key DWMs and vendors by presenting some in-depth case studies.METHODS: A non-systematic search for COVID-19 products was performed across 118 DWMs. Levels of activity, credibility, content, COVID-19 product listings, privacy protocols were among the features retrieved. Open web fora and other open web sources were also considered for further analysis of both functional and non functional DWMs. Collected data refers to the period between January 2020 and October 2021.RESULTS: A total of 42 relevant listings sold by 24 vendors across eight DWMs were identified. Four of these markets were active and well-established at the time of the study with good levels of credibility. COVID-19 products were listed alongside other marketplace content. Vendors had a trusted profile, communicated in English language and accepted payments in cryptocurrencies (Monero or Bitcoin). Their geographical location included the USA, Asia and Europe. While COVID-19 related goods were mostly available for regional supply, other listings were also shipped worldwide.INTERPRETATION: Findings emerging from this study rise important questions about the health safety of certain DWMs activities and encourage the development of targeted interventions to overcome such new and rapidly expanding public health threats.FUNDING: CovSaf, National Research centre on Privacy, Harm Reduction and Adversarial Influence Online (REPHRAIN), Commonwealth Fund.Peer reviewe