Cybercriminals are earning more than ever before, with an annual haul of $1.5 trillion according to a new study conducted by Dr. Michael McGuire, a senior lecturer in criminology at the University of Surrey.
The study revealed crimes of every description are being committed using new technology, ranging from drug deals and money laundering to human trafficking and even terrorism.
The Cambridge Analytica story, McGuire says, was “just the tip of the iceberg,” stating that there was much more unreported manipulation of social media and related tech companies for the generation of ill-gotten gains.
“It’s more of a question of which platforms aren’t being misused,” Dr McGuire told The Independent. “AirBnb and Uber are being used to move money around, Instagram has become a hotbed for illicit drug dealing, while eBay and Amazon are being used to peddle counterfeit goods and bypass local tax laws.”
Dr. McGuire refers to this new mode as platform criminality, where bad actors are turning malware into products for criminals to use to commit crimes.
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