Does cybercrime indicate serious offending behavior? A cross-national comparative analysis of cybercrime severity

Abstract

Despite the growing importance of cybercrime, its severity compared to offline crime is unclear. This study used data from the representative International Self-Report Delinquency Study (N = 28,325) to compare four cybercrimes—hacking, cyberfraud, cyberhate, and online sexual abuse—with offline crimes among 13–17-year-olds in Europe and South America. Item Response Theory was used to analyze the criminal behavior indicated by cybercrimes compared to offline crimes and their effectiveness in distinguishing between young individuals with high and low levels of delinquency. The results show that although cybercrime offending indicate relatively serious criminal behavior, traditional crimes more accurately differentiate between young people with different levels of criminal behavior. These patterns are observed in both continents, with some differences. This study has implications for anti cybercrime policies.