The relationship and interactions between offenders and victims have drastically changed due to the invention of cyber technology. Due to the nature of the cyber world, a cybercriminal can victimize anyone from anywhere. A criminal can be sitting on their couch and steal money from someone thousands of miles away! The internet has given criminals access to any targets, including targets they never would have been able to victimize in the physical world. A single individual can now target a large company or popular celebrity because the internet gives them access to do so. That is one big difference between traditional crime and cybercrime. Cybercriminals no longer have to be in the same physical space as their victims, which in some ways gives them more power as well as anonymity. The victims may never know or interact with their offenders. This may make the offender bold and commit crimes they never would in person. The victim may not even know they were victimized if it all occurs behind the scenes. That is very different that traditional crime where the results are usually seen or felt right away.

In some cases, though, there could be a long, drawn-out relationship between the offender and the victim. This is the case with romance scams, for example. The offender spends a long amount of time pretending to be one person to their victim and making them fall in love. Then, they can get the victim to send them money or give them access to credit cards or bank accounts and then disappear forever.

An offender can also be an individual that the victim knows well. They might slowly steal data or money from their employers over long periods of time without their employers knowing. This is especially easy if they have little oversight and access to files or accounts they don’t actually need access to for their job or that don’t get checked very often. Alternatively, the offender could go to school or work with the victim and bully or harass them online. The perpetrator could even cyber-stalk them, gaining details about their private lives, all from the comfort of their couch.

The digital world has changed the landscape of cybercrime. With this change comes a modification of the traditional relationships and interactions between an offender and a victim. Individuals need to be aware of these and find ways to keep themselves safe in order to avoid falling victim to a cybercriminal.