The Continuing Pain of Cybercrime Explained in One Simple Graph

Let the line A show the rate at which we are increasing the following variables:

• number of people with cyber skills
• the amount of resources devoted to deterring cybercrime
• the level of regulatory compliance
• the national resolve to address the problem
• international resolve to address the problem

Now let line B show the rate at which the following are increasing:

• number of people on the Internet
• number of things on the Internet (IoT)
• the ease of use and accessibility of cybercrime tools
• the number of people prepared to engage in cybercrime

Graph these over time and you can see C = the pain of cybercrime. The more we can increase the upward angle of A, while reducing the upward angle of B, the less cybercrime we will experience.

Just to be clear, globally speaking, C is a net negative. Cybercrime can be positive for criminals and their immediate economic environs, such as communities with limited options for legal employment of a gainful nature. However, C undermines the primary factors by which the upward angle of A can be increased: economic prosperity and political stability.