Motives Ranking

Rank the motives from 1 to 7 as the motives that you think make the most sense (being 1) to the least sense (being 7). Explain why you rank each motive the way you rank it.

1. Political—Political motives make the most sense when it comes to cybercrimes because most people are passionate about their beliefs. Since politics dramatically affects people’s lives and survival, I believe this will motivate most cybercrimes.

2. Multiple reasons – This makes sense because most criminals have one motive that outranks most, but there are usually multiple reasons why cybercriminals commit their crimes.

3. Recognition – When it comes to recognition, this motive comes third because I believe some criminals want to be held in high esteem and want the infamy that will accompany their crimes if they succeed.

4. For money – I believe money is a strong motive for most cybercriminals because of economic reasons and the desire to buy what they desire and need. Everyone needs or wants money, which is why it plays a significant role in most people committing crimes involving money. An example of this is when someone takes the opportunity to steal money that isn’t theirs because they have necessities that they require, or they desire to purchase things they want, such as electronics, cars, clothes, or other miscellaneous items.

5. Revenge – This motive makes sense because people usually seek revenge in reaction to a strong emotional response, but the method and reason for it don’t always make sense. Example if someone‘s bank account is compromised and their money stolen then I can understand why the person will want to seek revenge but similar to the article, if someone posts revenge porn or someone’s personal information or pictures is not a suitable method of revenge.

6. Boredom—This motive makes sense because with the use of technology and everyone having access to it in some form, boredom can lead to a lot of issues. Boredom can lead to people posting or revealing personal information online, which in turn leads to them becoming the victims of cybercrime, specifically cyberbullying or grooming. This motive doesn’t make the most sense to me because people should be able to post their beliefs, wants, and opinions without others targeting them, but this is usually a factor in why someone may be targeted. As for hackers, this motive could play a role because they typically want to gain something from the attempt when they attempt a crime.

7. Entertainment – This motive makes the least sense to me because usually cybercriminals have a reason for their crime other than just for entertainment.