ABSTRACT
Introduction Moore’s law holds that the capacity of computers will double every two years. One hardly needs to be reminded that developments occur rapidly in the digital age. While some basic elements of the early cybercrime landscape are still apparent, much has changed during the decades since the release of the Morris Worm and the exploits of Kevin Mitnick (Hafner & Markoff, 1991). This essay will explore developments in cybercrime that have occurred since 2006. Some of these were visible in primitive or embryonic form at the end of the twentieth century. Others were not anticipated until much more recently. The three basic trends around which this paper is oriented are sophistication, commercialization, and organizational diversity. By sophistication, we mean the complexity of methods by which cybercrime is executed. By commercialization, we refer to the salience of profits and markets as motivations for cybercrime. Our discussion of organization will focus on the apparent diversity of organizational form represented in recent cybercriminal activity.
