Cybercrime is criminal activity that targets computers, networks and data or uses them as the main tool to commit offences such as fraud, extortion and theft.
Types of cybercrime
Law enforcement often distinguishes two groups:
- Cyber-dependent crimes – offences that can only be committed with computers: hacking into systems, spreading malware, ransomware extortion, DDoS attacks and data theft.
- Cyber-enabled crimes – traditional crimes scaled up through the internet: phishing and online fraud, business email compromise, investment and romance scams, identity theft, sale of illegal goods and child sexual abuse material.
How the cybercrime economy works
Modern cybercrime is a specialised service economy. Developers sell or rent malware, initial access brokers sell entry into company networks, and ransomware-as-a-service affiliates carry out attacks for a share of the ransom. Forums and marketplaces on the dark web and in messengers trade stolen data, credentials and services, while money mules and cryptocurrency mixers launder the proceeds. This division of labour lets people with little technical skill launch serious attacks.
Why cybercrime matters
Cybercrime affects individuals, companies, hospitals and governments alike, and its losses run into billions of dollars per year according to reports such as the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center’s (IC3) annual statistics. Because attackers can operate across borders, international cooperation is essential: the Council of Europe’s Budapest Convention on Cybercrime (2001) remains the main treaty, and the UN adopted its own convention against cybercrime in 2024. Joint operations have taken down major threats, such as the Emotet botnet in 2021 and the LockBit ransomware infrastructure in Operation Cronos in 2024.
How to reduce the risk
- Use multi-factor authentication, update software and keep offline backups.
- Train people to recognise phishing and fraud attempts.
- Report incidents to national police or CERT teams, which helps investigations.
