Since the world entered the 21st century, technology has not just simplified life but also transformed the essence of human living and collaboration. The digital revolution affords the world components of life, such as business transactions and social interactions, healthcare, and education, that few ever believed they would experience less than a generation ago. However, accelerated digitalization also opened the door to a more complicated threat, namely cybercrime.

Cybercrimes, generally defined as illegal activities taking place over the internet or using computer technology, have emerged as a serious challenge to global stability. Cybercrime is a multi-pronged and complex threat that can be perpetrated by lone or nation-backed actors and organized crime groups, which can generate threats to individuals, organizations, nations, and the world. As Bangladesh becomes more technologically advanced, it is met with the new challenge of growing cyber-attacks.

The ever-increasing interconnectivity and reliance of society on digital infrastructures are increasing the risk of cybercrime day by day. Therefore, a robust cyber security strategy to address these challenges comprehensively with global best practices and local solutions must become one of the key priorities.

Types of cybercrime: Cybercrimes can be classified into several categories, such as:

Cyber-attacks and jacking: One of the common forms of cybercrime is cyber-attacks, where malicious actors exploit vulnerabilities in computer systems to gain unauthorized access. Hacking, a subset of cyber-attacks, involves bypassing security mechanisms to gain control of a network or system. Cyber-attacks can target businesses, governments, critical infrastructure, and even individuals. Such attacks have far-reaching impacts on both national and global boundaries, as they can cripple industries and governments, erode public trust, and result in significant economic losses.

Financial cybercrime: Financial crime that illegally acquires another person's money or other valuables, such as identity theft, credit card fraud, online banking fraud, and investment scams. Hackers use phishing malware and other social engineering to trick their targets into revealing sensitive financial information. Phishing is one of the most popular financial cybercrime tactics; in phishing scams, fraudulent websites are set up, or phishing emails are sent in an effort to steal personal financial data. As a result of the evolution of online banking and e-commerce, there is now more financial data than ever stored in cyberspace, leading to an unprecedented frequency of many different types of financial cybercrimes. Financial cybercrime has become one of the most occurring offenses in recent years.

Cyber espionage: Cyber espionage is also known as spying on governments, organizations, or individuals by using digital technologies. Such cybercrimes are usually performed by state-sponsored agents attacking sensitive data associated with national security, military strategies, economic interests, or intellectual property. All of this can lead to spillover into diplomatic relations, given that cyber espionage typically involves stealing sensitive information and gaining a decisive edge when competing on the world market or defense capabilities. Many nations are increasing cyber capabilities to overwhelm rivals without resorting to conventional warfare. Therefore, cyber espionage activities have become a weapon in geopolitical conflicts.

Cyber terrorism: Cyber terrorism is, in general, considered to be a more extreme behavior in which the Internet and computer networks are used to generate fear, disruption, or even mass destruction for political or ideological goals. Chaotic activities can create cyber-terrorism against critical infrastructures such as electricity networks, water resources, and transportation routes. Cyberterrorism is typically aimed at destabilizing governments, instilling fear within the citizenry, and disrupting essential services.

Impact of cybercrime: Few impacts of cybercrime are discussed below:

Global security: The rise of cybercrime has profound implications for global security. A cybercriminal operating from one country can launch an attack on systems in another country. The worldwide outreach of cybercrime has direct ramifications for the stability of nations. As cybercrime does not recognize borders, the borderless nature of cybercrime complicates efforts to regulate and enforce laws against cyber criminals.

National security risks: Cyber-attacks and cyber-espionage pose significant threats to national security. Governments rely on digital systems for defense, intelligence, law enforcement, and economic functions. A successful cyber-attack on these systems could lead to the disruption of military operations, the theft of classified information, and the manipulation of critical infrastructure. As they are, for instance, launching a cyber-attack on the power grid of a nation may well lead to massive blackouts across the nation, leading the economy to bankruptcy and putting the citizens in jeopardy. Moreover, cybercrime can be used as a tool in modern warfare. Cyber-conflict enables enemies to reach their political goals without conventional action. As such, cyber warfare has become an essential aspect of modern geopolitics, with countries investing heavily in cyber capabilities to protect their interests and disrupt their rivals.

Tangible financial losses: According to a cybersecurity ventures report, by 2025, the global damages from cybercrime are predicted to reach $10.5 trillion annually, making cybercrime more profitable to the business world than the global trade in illegal drugs. The direct financial outlay, legal expenses, and damage to reputation are a few of the costs that often get allocated directly to businesses and people, but in all instances, they ultimately flow back through to the consumer. Cybercrime not only comes with immediate financial losses but, beyond that, also puts the economy in a ripple effect. Furthermore, attacks on the supply chain or manufacturing process can disrupt or stop production, which causes scarcity and damages the global economy.

Threat to public trust: Cybercrime erodes public trust in digital systems and the internet. This hypersuspicion could cause individuals and organizations to be more cautious about interacting digitally. It will restrict the dispersal of the newest technologies fundamental to the global economy, such as e-commerce, digital currencies, and cloud computing. Moreover, high-profile cyber-attacks against governments and businesses can decrease citizens' confidence in the capacity of authorities to safeguard data and privacy. With the rise in data breaches where hackers obtain personal details such as credit card numbers, social security numbers, and medical records, many individuals suffer from mistrust regarding digital systems.

Challenges in combating cybercrime: When fighting against cybercrime, some key challenges include:

Jurisdictional issues: As cybercriminals are not bound to any geographical boundaries, it is very challenging for law enforcement agencies to tackle the issue. However, due to the differing nature of laws and regulations of cybercrime in every country, nationalistic sentiments can become a political, legal and diplomatic hurdle for international cooperation. In addition, the cybercriminals base themselves in areas where there are no strong cyberspace laws or extradition agreements, which makes it difficult to bring them to justice.

The more versatile cybercriminals: Cybercriminals are becoming increasingly versatile in their methods, using advanced techniques such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and encryption to evade detection. Miscreants frequent the dark web, and they can't usually be found on conventional search engines. Hence, tracking them is difficult. Furthermore, cybercriminals are quick to adapt to changes in technology by continuously coming up with new ways to exploit the gaps in digital system's security.

Shortage of expert cybersecurity workforce: The cyber threat landscape has become ever more challenging to combat, particularly across the globe, where there is an acute shortage of skilled professionals in cyber security. As cybercrime continues to become more advanced, there are always countless positions in the cybersecurity field that go unfilled due to a lack of qualified talent.

Strategies for mitigating cybercrime: To effectively combat cybercrime, governments, institutions, and individuals must take a proactive approach. Several strategies are described below:

International cooperation: Where crime knows no frontiers, cybersecurity demands international collaboration. All countries need to collaborate on sharing intelligence and aligning legislation so that international laws can be created to help prosecute cybercriminals. The United Nations, the European Union, and INTERPOL have already taken steps to ensure cooperation in combating cybercrime.

Establish cybersecurity infrastructure: Governments and other organizations must invest the required amounts in cybersecurity infrastructure to protect critical systems and data slots. This is comprised of firewalls, encryption technologies, and intrusion detection systems, which do not allow unauthorized access. Additionally, frequent security audits and updates need to identify and address the vulnerabilities.

Education and public awareness: Conducting regular cybersecurity training and learning sessions will reduce the impact by generating public awareness. Individuals need to be trained in best practices on what they can do to keep their private information safe online through strong passwords, avoiding phishing scams and regular data backup, encrypting data when necessary, and keeping their antivirus programs up-to-date. Furthermore, it is important for organizations to train employees on cybersecurity measures and spotting threats.

Robust legal frameworks: Governments must tighten legal frameworks to curb cybercriminals. This involves updating and amendments of laws on pace with technology, enforcing regulations on data privacy, and capacity building for law enforcement through specialized cybercrime units. Robust and time-efficient legal frameworks will hold anyone accountable regardless of where the miscreants are operating from.

In conclusion:

In the digital age, cybercrime is an evident factor in global and national security, the economy, and public confidence; as technology evolves, so does the risk. The growing expertise of cybercriminals, combined with the interrelations of global systems, has made it progressively difficult to combat these crimes. The impact of cybercrime is not unconvincing, and the risks continue to evolve as new technologies emerge. Global security cannot be built on individual or regional efforts alone; protecting it from the increasing dangers of cybercrime and terrorist attacks requires a multilateral approach combining international cooperation, the creation of cybersecurity infrastructure, awareness among the general public, and robust legal frameworks. Together, these approaches are the way to tackle cybercrime and offer the world a safer, more secure digital future.

Lieutenant Colonel Mahbub Ul Haque, PSC, Engineers, Bangladesh Army.