The impact of cybercrime on modern society

Cyber Crime

It is important to note that today, unlike was the case a couple of years ago, technology has made it easy for businesses to compete more efficiently, reduce costs associated with doing business, and address the needs of customers in a more effective manner. However, the same technology has brought with itself some unique challenges. This is particularly the case with regard to increased instances of cyber crime.

Cyber crime and its Impact on Businesses and Consumers

Cyber crime, according to Thomas and Loader (as cited in Reyes, Brittson, O'Shea, and Steele, 2011, p. 28), constitutes of all those "…computer-mediated activities which are either illegal or considered illicit by certain parties and which can be conducted through global electronic networks." The examples of cyber crime offered by the authors in this case include, but they are not limited to, software piracy, industrial espionage, network break-ins, etc. As the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) has pointed out in the past, cyber crime has (for the last few years), been on the increase among American business entities (Snow, 2014). The key driving force of this trend has largely been the need for business competitors and other unscrupulous individuals or organizations to steal critical information about a business and its operations, as well as get access to confidential client information. In some cases, instances of cyber crime has been driven by pure malice, such as is the case when hackers compromise an entity's network or servers with an aim of denying service to the concerned entity's website.

Cyber crime has got huge cost implications for businesses. To begin with, when it comes to the cost of protection, it is important to note that companies that would wish to hold cyber criminals at bay have to incur various costs such as costs associated with risk identification; costs of establishing operating procedures regarded safe; costs of purchasing, installing, as well as monitoring protective hardware and software, etc. It should be noted that the costs could be even higher for businesses involved in sensitive operations, i.e. ecommerce businesses that handle and process sensitive customer information. This is particularly the case given that in addition to putting in place excellent measures (installation of costly protective hardware and software) to hold cyber criminals at bay, such businesses may also be forced to hire cyber-security professionals to keep watch over their operating procedures. In the final analysis, therefore, the costs businesses incur as a consequence of cyber crime are massive and could impact negatively on the bottom-line.

Businesses could also lose money as a consequence of denial of service attacks. Some of the companies that have been subjected to denial of service attacks include, but they are not limited to MasterCard and PayPal. It is important to note during the time the company's sites are down as a result of such attacks, and before IT experts can restore them, customers are effectively shut out -- thus denying the affected businesses revenues thought the entire period.

In the past, we have had cases of businesses being taken to court by clients who feel aggrieved as a result of inappropriate exposure of their private information after criminals manage to infiltrate the affected businesses' networks and computers. In some cases, the aggrieved clients end up incurring actual monetary losses as a result of what is, in their view, inability of businesses (typically banks) to take the necessary steps to protect them. For instance, TRC Operating Co. recently "sued the Fresno-based United Security Bank, claiming that the bank has failed to adequately secure its accounts" (ESET Staff Writer, 2014). The settlement reached in this particular case was $350,000 -- in favor of TRC. Some companies may even be forced to close shop for fear of exposure to costly litigation. This is particularly the case for small businesses whose budgets cannot allow them to invest in extensive security measures to deter cyber criminals.

On the customer side, it should be noted that the costs businesses incur in having their businesses protected against cyber crime end up being passed on to the customer, in terms of higher costs of goods and services. Customers, therefore, loose by having their disposable incomes slashed.

Next, it should also be noted that in those instances where critical customer information such as bank information ends up in the wrong hands as a consequence of cyber crime, the affected customers could have their bank accounts compromised or their identity stolen.

Customers could also be inconvenienced by denial of service attacks. For instance, when the victim of a denial of service attack is an ecommerce website, customers are prevented from making any form of purchase. When the victim in this case happens to be an online money transfer service, those wishing to make payments and those waiting to receive payments from various sources are effectively prevented from transacting. It is not difficult to see why this is a significant inconvenience to customers.

Impact on the U.S. Government and National Security

The negative impacts of cyber crime are not limited to businesses. The government also suffers as a result of cyber crime. To begin with, the internet and information systems have in the past been used by foreign states and unscrupulous individuals as tools for theft of crucial government information and intelligence briefs. As per the testimony presented by Gordon M. Snow - the FBI Assistant Director, Cyber Division -- before a Senate subcommittee, "it is difficult to state with confidence that our critical infrastructure -- the backbone of our country's economic prosperity, national security, and public health -- will remain unscathed and always be available when we need it" (Snow, 2011). Snow lends credence to his assertion by citing the security breach experienced at NASADQ a few years ago. What is more worrying is that it is often difficult to track down and apprehend cyber criminals who manage to penetrate the nation's critical networks via cyber networks due to their ability to mask not only their identities, but also their locations. Indeed, as Snow (2011) acknowledges, determining real attribution is often difficult in such cases. It is therefore likely that going forward, our nation's most sensitive economic, military, as well as intelligence information will continue to be at risk due to the rising instances of cyber crime.