The overlap between Criminal Justice and Cybercrime

From my aspect and many other experts, there is a huge overlap between criminal justice and cybercrime. Cybercrime is a new rise concept leading to many jobs and academic majors to further prepare for the aspect. Cybercrime differs from criminal justice because cybercrime focuses on the crimes that occur through technological devices such as computers, phones, and other software devices. Cybercrimes and the ease of access to the internet and computers have opened new opportunities for criminals to commit offenses. It is very common to see cybercriminals rationalize the reasoning behind their actions. Most people believe they are not actually committing crimes because they are not physically hurting someone or a group of people. There has been a high level of double standards within criminal justice and cybercrime which have given cybercriminals the upper hand and helped them create loopholes in committing these crimes. According to Thomas Holt the author of Regulating Cybercrime through law enforcement and industry mechanisms, “Cybercrimes, or offenses enabled by technology, affect computer systems and people and prove difficult to pursue through traditional criminal justice strategies due to jurisdictional challenges and legal hurdles. As a result, corporations and industry have begun to play a role in mitigating various forms of cybercrime.” As technology evolves, our society continues to change. Due to the rise of cybercrime, the government has been urged to review current laws and potentially add or change them to make them able to cybercrime as well. There is no doubt that online crimes need to be addressed immediately. Even though they do not do physical damage to a person or group of people they still can have long-lasting effects. For example, a cyberattack can cost people thousands of dollars and it also compromises the privacy of many. The absence of a clear criminal law will benefit criminals as we move towards digitalizing almost every aspect of our lives.

Work Cited:

Holt, Thomas J. “Regulating Cybercrime through Law Enforcement and Industry Mechanisms.” The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, vol. 679, no. 1, Sept. 2018, pp. 140–157, doi:10.1177/0002716218783679.