What is CyberCrime?

What is CyberCrime?

When you hear the word “cybercriminal” what image comes to mind? Is it a sketchy guy, perhaps wearing a dark hoodie, camped out in a dank basement somewhere, typing away furiously? While that image is in the public consciousness thanks to movies and TV, the real picture of a cybercriminal is much different: cybercrime is incredibly organized and professionalized.

Cybercriminals buy and sell malware online (generally on the dark web) while also trading in services that test how robust a virus is, business intelligence dashboards to track malware deployment, and tech support (that’s right — crooks can contact a criminal helpline to troubleshoot their illegal hacking server or other malfeasance!).

The professionalization and proliferation of cybercrime adds up to countless costs in damages every year, impacting individuals, businesses, and even governments. Experts estimate that cybercrime damages will reach $6 trillion annually by 2021, making it one of the most lucrative criminal enterprises.

As the Internet of Things (IoT) evolves and smart devices become more popular, cybercriminals benefit from a much broader attack surface — increased opportunities to penetrate security measures, gain unauthorized access, and commit crimes.

As the saying goes, there’s more than one way to skin a cat — and there are most certainly a variety of ways to make money as a cybercriminal.

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Common examples of cybercrime

As mentioned, cybercriminals range from individuals to criminal organizations to state-sponsored actors. Just as the type of criminal varies, so do their crimes and the methods they use to break the law. From a single hacker who managed to hack into the US stock market to North Korean state-sponsored groups that propagated ransomware on a massive scale, there are a staggering amount of cybercriminals active every day. Moreover, expert skills are no longer required to become a cybercrook.

Here are some standout examples of cybercrime to watch out for.

Malware

Computer viruses are the granddaddy of cybercrime; probably the first kind of it you became aware of. Viruses infect computer systems, destroying files, messing with the overall functionality, and self-replicating to jump to other devices and systems. Viruses are actually a form of malware, which encompasses all kinds of malicious software: any code or programs written and distributed to do damage, steal data, make money for their owner, and generally ruin your day. This includes ransomware, which can lock up your files until you pay a ransom to decrypt them, and adware, which spams you with ads.

Identity theft and other fraud

While identity theft is not exclusively a cybercrime, these days it’s much more likely to happen through technology. In fact, identity fraud happens every two seconds in America today. If a hacker wants to commit identity theft or credit card fraud, they first need to access enough of their victim’s personal data to fuel the crime. Here are several ways they can get that access:

• Phishing: Cybercrooks use “bait” in the form of fraudulent messages to lure victims to fake sites where they unwittingly enter personal information like usernames, passwords, or bank details.
• Pharming: Taking it one step deeper than phishing, pharming uses malware to reroute unsuspecting internet surfers to fake versions of websites, where they unknowingly enter their personal details.
• Keylogging: This type of malware (or to be more specific, spyware) secretly logs everything you type, capturing your account information and other personal details.
• Sniffing: If you’re connected to an unsecured, unencrypted public Wi-Fi network, hackers can steal your data by “sniffing” your internet traffic with special tools (unless you have a VPN, of course).

While hackers have many ways to steal personal data, there are also some good ways you can prevent identity theft. Avoid accessing your personal accounts (especially online banking) on public Wi-Fi, and consider setting up a monitoring service to make sure your online accounts haven’t been breached.

Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying refers to all kinds of online harassment, including stalking, sexual harassment, doxing (exposing someone’s personal information, like their physical address, online without their consent), and fraping (breaking into someone’s social media and making fake posts on their behalf).

Cryptojacking

Cryptojacking is when hackers break into your device and use it to mine cryptocurrency without your knowledge or consent. Cryptominers do this by using JavaScript to infect your device after you visit an infected website. This can cause performance issues and high electric bills for you — and earn big profits for the cryptojackers. 

Cyberextortion

Cyberextortion is just what it sounds like — a digital version of the nightmare that is extortion. One of the most common forms is ransomware, when hackers infect your computer with malware that encrypts all your files until you pay them a ransom to unlock them. Cyberextortion can also refer to blackmailing victims using their personal info, photos, and video; or threatening businesses using methods like botnet-driven DDoS attacks. 

Cyberespionage

As mentioned, many cybercriminals these days are actually state-sponsored groups. Whether it’s the North Koreans, the Iranians, or even the US’s own NSA-affiliated Equation Group, world powers use hacker groups as one weapon in the complicated matrix of global politics. Stealing classified intelligence and using malware to attack nuclear plants are just two ways in which state-sponsored groups can do some frightening things on the world stage.

No matter the type of cybercrime, you can help protect yourself by installing a strong antivirus program like Avast Free Antivirus. Avast will block malicious links, suspicious websites, harmful downloads, and various other threats. Cybercriminals don’t like to work too hard — if they can’t access your machine or personal data, they’re likely to move on to the next (easier) victim. So give yourself a strong layer of defense and fight back against cybercrooks.