Cybercrime is on the rise worldwide

It is estimated that there are approximately 80 million automated hackers. Up to two percent of global GDP could be represented by internet black markets. Cryptocurrencies provide anonymity and the ability to commit crimes. Perhaps World War III is being waged today in cyberspace with attacks on critical infrastructure.

Profits from crimes committed in cyberspace could exceed three trillion dollars per year, more than three-quarters of cybercriminals are linked to organized crime and it is estimated that every day there are one million victims; that is, approximately 14 adults every second, according to the United Nations (UN).

This was stated by Armando Granados Carreón, an academic from UNAM's Law School, who explained that these acts are an emerging form of transnational crime that by 2015 was estimated to affect more than 400 million people. While participating in the round table "Cybercrime", of the II International Virtual Congress of Criminal Law. Carlos Daza Gómez In Memoriam added that one of the fastest-growing is credit card fraud, it is estimated that there are up to 80 million automated hackers.

Other crimes on the net are related to identity, copyright, and intellectual property, as well as child pornography. "To commit them, it is not necessary to be computer specialists, since the software tools to carry them out can be bought online," remarked the head of the FD's Open University Division.

Rodolfo Romero Flores, also an academic at this School, agreed that there are estimates that black markets, in which goods and services whose production and/or distribution is illegal -such as drugs, weapons, child pornography, and controlled medicines, among others- are exchanged, represent two percent of the world's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). However, some point out that in developed countries it could reach up to 16 percent of their GDP, and in underdeveloped countries, 36 percent.

There is still no consensus on a methodology to evaluate these illegal markets since it is difficult to detect the misdeeds that are growing exponentially due to the increase in the use of the Internet and particularly the Deep Web (hidden network), the anonymity it provides to consumers and its difficult traceability, as well as the emergence of crypto assets or cryptocurrencies. Among the main countries involved in these markets are the United States and China, as well as Japan, Italy, Spain. "Mexico is also and is an issue that should concern and occupy us," he said.

Meanwhile, Granados Carreón recalled that the UN raised its combat for several years and as of 2019 issued resolution 73/187 for the fight against the use of information and communications technologies for criminal purposes. It is known that there are substantial differences between states to deal with this scourge of humanity, and this requires international cooperation, sharing information and experiences, providing training to investigators, police, prosecutors, and judges, providing them with devices and technology, as well as uniform legislation. "It is necessary to try to have international instruments so that the fight becomes a common struggle," said the university expert.

However, he pointed out that governments engage in practices similar to crime when carrying out, for example, hacking and cyber espionage, even with the argument that it is carried out for national security reasons. "No world power can deny that they have tried to engage in this activity; they do not acknowledge their responsibility," he added.

Scams and attacks on infrastructure

Previously, the professor of Criminal Law at the University of Granada, Spain, and substitute prosecutor of the Prosecutor's Office of the High Court of Justice of Andalusia, Carlos Aránguez Sánchez, exposed: During the pandemic cybercrime increased and the resolution rate is "extraordinarily low", just 16 percent. Cryptocurrencies are a disruptive technology in means of payment that will soon be part of everyday life. One of its advantages is that it allows money to be programmed to be used only for certain purposes.

The ability to maintain anonymity in this type of payment and make it remotely, make it the ideal area for committing crimes. "Nobody knows your identity: you can hire a hitman to kill your neighbor, buy child pornography or credit card data. If you pay for it with cryptocurrencies, you close the circle; especially if the illicit good doesn't have to pass into the real world." Aránguez Sánchez related that during the pandemic in Spain aggressive messages were issued for people to invest in this type of coins with ideas such as: "Put your money to work", and pyramid scams were carried out that are estimated to exceed one billion euros.

María Concepción Gorjón Barranco, an academic from the Faculty of Law of the University of Salamanca, said that some claim that today the Third World War is being waged in cyberspace and it is based on cyber-attacks on critical infrastructures such as the computer systems of health services, energy, airports, among others. There is numerous malicious software that exists for remote access, a saturation of computers so that legitimate users cannot use it, redirecting to other pages, among other practices that lead to the need to talk about the risk society and to protect collective legal assets. Cybersecurity is a field developed by states, but cybercrimes are easily committed because in cyberspace there are no geographical barriers or nation-states; anonymity prevails, which limits the possibility of controlling it.

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