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Predicting susceptibility to cyber-fraud victimhood

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  • Monica T. Whitty

Abstract

Purpose - This paper aims to develop a theoretical framework to predict susceptibility to cyber-fraud victimhood. Design/methodology/approach - A survey was constructed to examine whether personality, socio-demographic characteristics and online routine activities predicted one-off and repeat victimhood of cyber-fraud. Overall, 11,780 participants completed a survey (one-off victims,N= 728; repeat victims = 329). Findings - The final saturated model revealed that psychological and socio-demographic characteristics and online routine activities should be considered when predicting victimhood. Consistent with the hypotheses, victims of cyber-frauds were more likely to be older, score high on impulsivity measures of urgency and sensation seeking, score high on addictive measures and engage in more frequent routine activities that place them at great risk of becoming scammed. There was little distinction between one-off and repeat victims of cyber-frauds. Originality/value - This work uniquely combines psychological, socio-demographic and online behaviours to develop a comprehensive theoretical framework to predict susceptibility to cyber-frauds. Importantly, the work here challenges the current utility of government websites to protect users from becoming scammed and provides insights into methods that might be used to protect users from becoming scammed.

Suggested Citation

  • Monica T. Whitty, 2019. "Predicting susceptibility to cyber-fraud victimhood," Journal of Financial Crime, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 26(1), pages 277-292, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:eme:jfcpps:jfc-10-2017-0095
    DOI: 10.1108/JFC-10-2017-0095
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    Cited by:

    1. Nombulelo Queen Mabeka, 2022. "The Application of Section 8 of Cybercrimes Act 19 of 2020 in Civil Procedure in South Africa is a Hailing Snow: A Comparative Studies between South Africa and United Kingdom," International Journal of Law and Public Administration, Redfame publishing, vol. 5(2), pages 1-13, December.
    2. C. A. Robb & S. Wendel, 2023. "Who Can You Trust? Assessing Vulnerability to Digital Imposter Scams," Journal of Consumer Policy, Springer, vol. 46(1), pages 27-51, March.
    3. Hong, Sunmin & Jeong, Dohyo & Kim, Pyung, 2024. "Have offender demographics changed since the COVID-19 pandemic? Evidence from money mules in South Korea," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).

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