Research synthesis of cybercrime laws and COVID-19 in Indonesia: lessons for developed and developing countries

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented global challenge to the whole society. Previously, most of the physical activities were not conducted online and were not exposed to cybercrime. Thus, it necessitates paying attention to this emerging phenomenon and devising strategies for a safe online environment for all stakeholders. The current study presents a historical overview of cybercrime and the cybersecurity system and highlights cybercrimes’ legal importance globally and cybercrime regulations during the Covid-19 times, specifically in the Indonesian context. Using a normative juridical approach, this study collected secondary data from various books, journals, regulatory guidelines, institutional reports, research, and the Internet. Additionally, a systematic literature search methodology was used to collect relevant secondary data from the most popular database, i.e., Scopus. Results revealed that although many nations are actively working to control cybercrimes, the issue persists, and many new cyber threats, i.e., scams and phishing, emerged during the Covid-19 pandemic. In such situations, along with the existence of a promising cybersecurity system, cybercitizens should always consider hygienic cyber tips to avoid being victims of cyber coronavirus crimes. Finally, after presenting an overview of the current state of cybercrime legislation on COVID-19, key policy recommendations for developed and developing countries are given, along with future research directions.