Virtual Criminality: Old Wine in New Bottles?
| DOI | 10.1177/a017405 |
| Date | 01 June 2001 |
| Author | Peter N Grabosky |
| Published date | 01 June 2001 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
VIRTUAL CRIMINALITY: OLD
WINE IN NEW BOTTLES?
PETER N. GRABOSKY
Australian Institute of Criminology, Australia
INTRODUCTION
IT HAS become trite to suggest that the convergence of computing and
communications has begun to change the way we live, and the way we
commit crime. Whether this will necessitate a revision of our philosophi-
cal, historical and sociological assumptions, however, is another matter. One
must beware of overgeneralization and hyperbole, which characterize a great
deal of discourse on the digital age. In the pages that follow, I suggest that
‘virtual criminality’ is basically the same as the terrestrial crime with which
we are familiar. To be sure, some of the manifestations are new. But a great
deal of crime committed with or against computers differs only in terms of
the medium. While the technology of implementation, and particularly its
efficiency, may be without precedent, the crime is fundamentally familiar. It
is less a question of something completely different than a recognizable crime
committed in a completely different way.
Perhaps the most remarkable developments relating to crime in the digital
age are its transnational implications, and the threats to personal privacy
posed by new technologies. The speed of electronic transactions allows an
offender to inflict loss or damage on the other side of the world, bringing new
meaning to the term ‘remote control’. In addition, digital technology facili-
tates surveillance, by public agencies and the private sector, to a degree that
is quite revolutionary.
MOTIVATION
Let us look first at motivations of those who would commit computer-related
crime. One could perhaps be excused for observing plus ca change, plus c’est
la meme chose. Computer criminals are driven by time-honoured moti-
vations, the most obvious of which are greed, lust, power, revenge, adventure,
SOCIAL &LEGAL STUDIES 0964 6639 (200106) 10:2 Copyright © 2001
SAGE Publications, London, Thousand Oaks, CA and New Delhi,
Vol. 10(2), 243–249; 017405
06 Grabowsky (bc/d) 30/4/01 10:30 am Page 243
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