Abstract
The modern society has stepped into an information- and network-based new age that is globalized. Rapidly rising Internet technology and e-commerce play a tremendously positive role in promoting the social advance, technological innovation and economic development, but in the meantime, they exert negative impact in certain areas and various crime activities executed with use of the Internet technology surge consequently. Historically speaking, wildlife crime used to take place in the traditional market, but as Internet is popularized amid its fast development, more and more wildlife criminals are coming into the enormous virtual market via Internet, making wildlife crime one that is linked to the Internet. In recent years, TRAFFIC1 China has been conducting long-term monitoring over online trading platforms and the monitoring result shows that illicit wildlife trade in China has been transferred from physical market to online trading platforms and has been extended to social media platforms (Huanqiu Net, 2019). Online selling and online payment have become the major mode of wildlife crime linked to the Internet. However, compared with the continuously intensified combat against wildlife crime in the visible market in China, the fight against wildlife crime linked to the Internet still faces many new challenges. The paper introduces the basic concept, main characteristics and global trend of wildlife crime linked to the Internet, clarifies the international consensus on the combat against the crime, analyzes the experience and challenges of China in governing the crime and proposes the governing direction and advices on countermeasures for the country.
Highlights
TRAFFIC1 China has been conducting long-term monitoring over online trading platforms and the monitoring result shows that illicit wildlife trade in China has been transferred from physical market to online trading platforms and has been extended to social media platforms (Huanqiu Net, 2019)
According to the definition of “cybercrime” given by International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), cyber-enabled crimes refer to a series of traditional crimes that go through “new changes” along with the rise of Internet, and wildlife crime linked to the Internet should be taken as a type of cyber-enabled crime (TRAFFIC REPORT, 2019)
As different from traditional illegal capturing of wildlife and related visible forms of trade, wildlife cybercrime in this paper refers to wildlife crime linked to the Internet
Summary
The concept of wildlife crime linked to the Internet is not legislatively specified yet in the laws and regulations in China and no consensus on the concept has been reached in the academic circle and judicial practice. According to the advices on legal terms for wildlife crime in CITES2 CoP18’s executive committee report Combating Wild Animal Cyber Crime, cybercrime is a two-dimensional concept, including both cyber-dependent and cyber-enabled crime (CITES REPORT, 2019). Wildlife cybercrime can be taken as a type of cyber-enabled crime, but use of the term “wildlife crime linked to the Internet” would be more appropriate. For this reason, as different from traditional illegal capturing of wildlife and related visible forms of trade, wildlife cybercrime in this paper refers to wildlife crime linked to the Internet
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