Title: The difference between cybersecurity and cybercrime, and why it matters
Headings: The difference between cybersecurity and cybercrime, and why it matters
The difference between cybersecurity and cybercrime, and why it matters
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Victims of confidence fraud and romance scams
Understanding the differences
Differences between cybersecurity and cybercrime
Little research

Content: As a social scientist who studies online behavior and as the program coordinator for one of the few cybercrime undergraduate programs in the United States, I find it unfortunate that problems like Amy’s get relatively little national attention, especially compared to cybersecurity. Victims of confidence fraud and romance scams
Victims of confidence fraud and romance scams
In 2015, the number of U.S. victims of online confidence fraud, including romance scams, skyrocketed. And in 2016, the number went even higher. 0 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 10,000 12,000 14,000 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Number of victims
The Conversation, CC-BY-ND
Source: FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center
Understanding the differences
Cybersecurity is not merely a set of guidelines and actions intended to prevent cybercrime. The two types of problems differ substantially in terms of what happens and who the victims are, as well as the academic areas that study them. Cybersecurity is ultimately about protecting government and corporate networks, seeking to make it difficult for hackers to find and exploit vulnerabilities. Cybercrime, on the other hand, tends to focus more on protecting individuals and families as they navigate online life. Differences between cybersecurity and cybercrime
Differences between cybersecurity and cybercrime

Cybersecurity
Cybercrime
Types of crimes
Crimes where a computer network, software or hardware is the target (ransomware, viruses, worms, SQL injection, distributed denial of service attacks)
Crimes where the human or the human’s data is the target (romance scams, cyberbullying, hate speech, sexting, child pornography trafficking, trolling)
Victims
Corporations and governments
Families and individuals
Academic programs
Computer science, computer engineering, information technology
Criminology, psychology, sociology
Intellectual focus
Applied science oriented – coding, networking and engineering strategies for making networks more secure
Basic science oriented – theoretical understandings of how and why crime is committed
The Conversation, CC-BY-ND
Source: Roderick Graham
The U.S. has created several initiatives to improve its cybersecurity, including investments in cybersecurity education and expanding efforts of government agencies.