Victims Of Theft Research Articles

The Thief With a Thousand Faces and the Victim With None: Identifying Determinants for Online Identity Theft Victimization With Routine Activity Theory.

Available evidence suggests that identity theft is a growing problem that has significant consequences for victims, not the least of which is billions of dollars in financial losses. However, very little is known about the correlates or causes of identity theft victimization. Utilizing a nationally representative sample of individuals from the Canadian General Social Survey, the current study attempts to address this deficiency by examining the link between victims' online routine activities and their online identity theft victimization. It was found that certain routine activities directly influence the likelihood of experiencing identity theft. Potential research and policy implications also are discussed.

Techniki GIS – w poszukiwaniu hot spotów przestępczości

Techniki GIS – w poszukiwaniu hot spotów przestępczości

The Code of the Street and Violent Versus Property Crime Victimization.

Previous research has shown that individuals who adopt values in line with the code of the street are more likely to experience violent victimization (e.g., Stewart, Schreck, & Simons, 2006). This study extends this literature by examining the relationship between the street code and multiple types of violent and property victimization. This research investigates the relationship between street code-related values and 4 types of victimization (assault, breaking and entering, theft, and vandalism) using Poisson-based multilevel regression models. Belief in the street code was associated with higher risk of experiencing assault, breaking and entering, and vandalism, whereas theft victimization was not related to the street code. The results suggest that the code of the street influences victimization broadly--beyond violence--by increasing behavior that provokes retaliation from others in various forms.

ECONOMICS OF THEFT

‘Economics of Theft’ analyses theft asan economic and social activity. The article challengesconventional attitude to theft as repulsive activitywhich causes moral indignation. Theft is analysedthrough two criteria which economists usually usewhen judging any economic activity; efficiency andequity. In addition to these two criteria a third one isintroduced, namely the optimal level of theft. In a vastmajority of cases theft redistributes income from betteroff to worse off; therefore, theft passes the test ofequity. Also, at lower levels a thief’s utility exceeds thedamage which a victim of theft suffers. As levels oftheft increase, marginal utility to a thief falls andmarginal damage to a victim of theft increases.Optimal level of theft is achieved when marginal utilityto a thief equals marginal damage to a victim of theft.Economists do not feel any moral indignation to theftsince it passes the test of equity. What concernseconomists is the fact that theft is unproductive activitywhich does not create any new value. Theft, therefore,does not pass the test of efficiency. The articleanalyses and compares theft with several economicactivities which do not create any material, intellectualor spiritual value and which pass neither the efficiencynor the equity test. Those activities might cause moralindignation but are perfectly legal. Economists canjustify theft until optimal level is reached, i.e. when thethief’s utility is equal to the damage suffered by avictim of theft. Laws, however, punish every theft evenwhen it is socially just. Apparently, there is a frictionbetween the economic theory and the legal system.Something must be wrong either with the economictheory or with the law. Or maybe both of them arewrong. A possible explanation might be found inMontesque’s statement that the legal system is anetwork through which big fish pass and small fish arecaught.

Consumer Use of Fraud Alerts and Credit Freezes: An Empirical Analysis

Fraud alerts — initial fraud alerts, extended fraud alerts, and credit freezes — help protect consumers from the consequences of identity theft. At the same time, they may impose costs on lenders, credit bureaus, and, in some instances, consumers. We analyze a unique data set of anonymized credit bureau files to understand how consumers use these alerts. We document the frequency and persistence of fraud alerts and credit freezes. Using the experience of the data breach at the South Carolina Department of Revenue, we show that consumers who file initial fraud alerts or credit freezes likely do so out of precaution. Consumers who file extended alerts are more likely to be actual victims of identity theft. We find that consumers are heterogeneous in their choice of alerts and that their choices are correlated with important characteristics found in their credit bureau files. These facts are useful for interpreting consumer responses to data breaches and for policymakers.

Anti-theft travel bag design: advantage, interest, and satisfaction

Theft around the world continues to rise and among the victims of theft, tourists have always been easy targets for thieves. However, research into the investigation of tourists’ perceptions of and attitudes towards the existing designs of anti-theft products is scarce. In this study, several bag theft cases were identified and corresponding anti-theft designs were selected. Consumers’ perceptions of advantage, interest, and satisfaction were collected through online image survey among college students. The results identified consumers’ perceptions of the existing designs of anti-theft travel bags and provided the designers with useful and practical suggestions during the bag designing processes. Modified designs are expected to enhance the theoretical plausibility of anti-theft function of travel bags, which might be capable of building up barriers to criminals and preventing or reducing the occurrences of bag theft incidents.

LEARNING TO DETECT PHISHING URLS

Phishing attacks have been on the rise and performing certain actions such as mouse hovering, clicking, etc. on malicious URLs may cause unsuspecting Internet users to fall victims of identity theft or other scams. In this paper, we study the anatomy of phishing URLs that are created with the specific intent of impersonating a trusted third party to trick users into divulging personal data. Unlike previous work in this area, we only use a number of publicly available features on URL alone; in addition, we compare performance of different machine learning techniques and evaluate the efficacy of real-time application of our method. Applying it on real-world data sets, we demonstrate that the proposed approach is highly effective in detecting phishing URLs with an error rate of 0.3%, false positive rate of 0.2% and false negative rate of about 0.5%, thereby improving previous results on the important problem of phishing detection.

Neighborhood Social Heterogeneity and Crime Victimization in Japan: Moderating Effects of Social Networks

We sought to apply social disorganization/social capital theory to the prediction of larceny victimization among community-dwelling residents. Based on social disorganization theory, we empirically derived an index of “social distance” by calculating averaged differences in sociodemographic characteristics (social class, stage of life course, size of hometown of origin) between residents. Our study was based on a postal questionnaire mailed to 1,000 residents of Arakawa Ward, Tokyo, Japan. Based on social capital theory, we also tested if neighborhood-level social ties could buffer the association between social distance and larceny victimization. Using multilevel analyses, we found that higher neighborhood-level social distance was associated with increased larceny victimization, independently of the respondents’ own background sociodemographic characteristics. Additionally, area-level supportive networks buffered the adverse effect of social distance on larceny victimization. By contrast, we also found that network size magnified the probability of victimization in neighborhoods characterized by large social distances between residents.

The Effect of Fear of Crime and Crime Victimization on Subjective Well-Being in Africa

A relatively limited number of studies have examined the effect of fear of crime and crime victimization on subjective well-being. This paper examines how fear of crime and crime victimization affect the well-being of people in Africa using data from the Round 4 of the Afrobarometer Surveys conducted in 20 countries. Consistent with the findings of previous studies, results from ordered probit and OLS regressions indicate that, each of fear of crime, theft victimization, and physical assault negatively influences well-being. In addition, the paper compares men and women on the basis of these effects, and finds that while fear of crime and theft victimization are significantly correlated with the well-being of women, neither has an effect on the well-being of men. However, physical assault significantly diminishes well-being for both men and women. The paper recommends that African governments pursue public policies that would improve labor market conditions, as lower unemployment could reduce crime, and increase well-being.

Parents’ perspectives of life challenges experienced by long-term paediatric brain tumour survivors: work and finances, daily and social functioning, and legal difficulties

Paediatric brain tumour survivors (PBTS) are at high risk for medical, neurocognitive and psychological sequelea during adulthood. Details illustrating the types and breadth of these chronic sequelae are essential to fully comprehend their impact on daily living. This study describes Canadian parents of PBTS perspectives of life challenges experienced by their now adult son or daughter related to work and finances, daily and social functioning, and legal difficulties. Parents of PBTS completed an anonymous online exploratory survey. Forty-six of 60 invited parents completed the survey. Parents reported that PBTS experienced difficulty gaining or sustaining employment (65 %) because of their health and/or a disability and employers reticence to hire and adequately support PBTS. Independent living was considered unaffordable for PBTS who received a disability allowance (82 %) and those who were employed (50 %). Thirty percent indicated their family experienced hardship because of PBTS medical expenses, which were usually paid for out of pocket (76 %). Although the majority of PBTS were independent with daily tasks and social functioning, a subgroup required continuous support. Forty percent of employed PBTS received limited assistance to accommodate their special needs. Parents indicated their son or daughter had been the victim of theft, fraud or assault (37 %), and commonly considered them vulnerable, in need of protection and feared for their future safety. Research that further illuminates the hardships facing PBTS and informs the development of support and resources to address PBTS vulnerabilities is warranted. PBTS are at risk for unemployment, financial challenges and legal difficulties, which appear to be poorly addressed by health and social programs.

Wage Theft Among Latino Day Laborers in Post-Katrina New Orleans: Comparing Contractors with Other Employers

This study examines the nature of wage theft among Latino day laborers who participated in post-Katrina construction work. It addresses three important issues: (a) Is wage theft more prevalent in circumstances where there is very little enforcement of labor law? (b) Are professional contractors more likely to commit wage theft than other employers such as homeowners and small businesses? And (c) Do contractors and non-contractors who commit wage theft vary in the reasons given to justify their crime? Through survey interviews with 304 Latino day laborers conducted at four procurement sites across the city, respondents indicate that 78 % were victims of wage theft over the previous year (2008). Comparisons of wage theft across multiple studies expose the need for the development of a common conceptualization of a rate of wage theft and the benefit of using similar sampling frames to facilitate cross-comparison. Analysis reveals that there was no significant variation in the incidence of wage theft by employer type. Contractors and non-contractors did not differ significantly in the average dollar amount of wage theft, in the number of days worked before wage theft was committed, or in the hourly wage promised to employees. Contractors were, however, much more likely to justify wage theft by citing lack of funds than non-contractors.

Opportunities for property victimization: Fixed and random effects models in a cross-national scope

Cross-national research on victimization often does not consider the cultural effects on opportunities leading to victimization. The current study uses a routine activities/lifestyles theoretical framework to examine the opportunities leading to two types of property victimization across forty-five countries. I employ fixed effect and random effect models in efforts to find the best explanation of theft and burglary victimization. The results indicate going out in the evening for leisure activities is an important source of opportunity for both types of property victimization. While a fixed effect model offers the most appropriate explanation for burglary victimization, theft is best explained by a random effects model. For theft victimization, variation in whether or not respondents work or go to school is explained, in part, by the level of development of the country. The findings provide evidence that there are different explanations of opportunity for burglary and theft victimization in a cross-national scope.

The minimum dropout age and student victimization

Over the years, the minimum dropout age has been raised to 18 in 21 states. Although these policy changes are promoted for their educational benefits, they have been shown to reduce crimes committed by youths in the affected age groups. However, an unintended consequence of increasing the minimum dropout age could be the displacement of crime from the streets to schools. We use data from the Youth Risk Behavior Surveys to estimate the relationship between minimum dropout age laws and student victimization. Our results suggest that higher minimum dropout ages increase the likelihood that females and younger students report missing school for fear of their safety and younger students are more likely to report being threatened or injured with a weapon on school property. Our results also yield some evidence that students are more likely to report being victims of in-school theft when the minimum dropout age is higher.

720 – Urban insecurity and fear of crime. a study among patients with anxiety and depressive disorders

Background There has been an increased interest on the role of urban security and fear of crime on mental health of the general population, but there are not studies about this among patients with minor psychiatric disorders. Objectives Assess patients’ fear of crime and perceived urban insecurity. Aim To, 1) evaluate the association between perceived urban insecurity and crime, and minor psychiatric disorders; 2) identify subgroups of patients with high levels of perceived urban insecurity and fear of crime. Method A sample of 24 patients with depressive or anxiety disorders attending outpatient services was collected. Patients consenting to the study underwent a battery of psychometric instruments. This study is part of a national multicentric study that enrolled 426 subjects. Results The sample was mainly composed by females (83%), cohabiting (58%), employed (54%). Patients were more frequently diagnosed with dysthymia (54%) had an average GAF score of 73 (SD=8,44), an average GHQ-12 of 17.33 (SD =3,95). 41% reported high level of insecurity or fear and 58% stated that their worries were increased compared to 10 years earlier. Reported reasons for this were mostly ‘decrease of social security’ and ‘loss of values’. 12.5% of the sample reported of having been victim of a theft or vandalism. Conclusions The results of this study are not only useful to understand the role of fear of crime in the onset and relapses of minor psychiatric disorders, but they can also help to plan psychiatrists’ and Public Health's interventions in order to prevent them.

교육시설내 CCTV에 대한 대학생의 인식조사 연구

본 논문에서는 교육시설내의 CCTV 설치에 따른 대학생의 인식을 조사하고 이를 통해 교육시설내 CCTV에 대한 인지성, 기대성, 수용성 등 다양한 항목을 분석하고자 한다. 이를 위해 기존의 다양한 CCTV 관련 설문을 분석하고 이를 통해 적절한 설문문항 요소를 추출 개발하여 이를 통한 향후 인식변화에 대한 설문조사 연구를 완성하고자 한다. 설문 조사전에 4가지 가설을 세웠으며 설문 결과 첫째, CCTV 설치에 따라 범죄예방 기대효과가 높으며 둘째, 절도 등에 대한 두려움, 폭력범죄에 대한 두려움이 감소되고 셋째, CCTV설치에 따른 인권침해부분을 감수하겠다는 의견이 높게 나타났고 넷째, 계열별 CCTV 인지에 대한 차이가 있었다. 또한 설치장소에는 조사에서는 학생편의시설내 설치에 부정적 의견이 많았다. 본 연구로 단순한 설치여부에 대한 찬반을 조사하는 설문이 아니라 최종적으로 개발된 설문에 의해 교육시설 내 CCTV에 대한 설치효과에 대한 다양한 가설의 검증과 인식의 변화를 효과적으로 파악하는 설문양식을 새롭게 제시하게 되었다. The purpose of this paper is to analyze various categories such as the recognition, expectation and acceptability of CCTV use in educational facilities by doing a survey on how college students think about the CCTV installed in educational facilities. For this research, diverse existing surveys regarding CCTV were examined, and the appropriate elements of survey questions were extracted and developed. Based on this method, we intend to complete a survey study hereafter on the change in perception regarding CCTV inspection. We made four hypotheses before the survey and the results of the survey are as follows: First, the expectations for CCTV's ability to reduce crime were high. Second, the fears about being a victim of theft or violence crime were decreased. Third, there were a number of respondents who would weigh more on increased safety by installing a CCTV rather than be concerned that CCTV may lead to the violation of students' human rights. Fourth, there showed a difference in recognizing CCTV among three groups. Also, for the questions regarding the places where CCTV is installed, there were many negative opinions on its installation in the student convenient facilities. What we have achieved was not a simple survey which investigates the pros and cons about CCTV use, but a newly suggested way of survey, which enables us to test various hypotheses and figure out the changing perceptions on CCTV effectiveness in educational facilities with more efficiency.

The Minimum Dropout Age and Student Victimization

Over the years, the legal minimum dropout age has been raised to 18 in 21 states. Although these policy changes are often promoted for their educational benefits, they have also been shown to reduce crimes committed by youths in the affected age groups. However, an unintended consequence of increasing the minimum dropout age could be the displacement of crime and delinquency from the streets to schools. To examine this issue, we use data from the national Youth Risk Behavior Surveys to estimate the relationship between minimum dropout age laws and student victimization. Our results suggest that higher minimum dropout ages increase the likelihood that females and younger students report missing days of school for fear of their safety and that younger students are more likely to report being threatened or injured with a weapon on school property. Our results also yield some evidence that students are more likely to report being victims of in-school theft when the minimum dropout age is higher.

Confronting the Legal Liabilities of IT Systems

The legal liability resulting from data breach or un-authorised information disclosure is emerging as a threat to the financial stability of many business. Recent studies and court cases are demonstrating that poorly maintained information systems, a lack of security polices and procedures have resulted in awarding victims large settlements. Professional firms with a responsibility to protect client confidential information are being victimised by criminal hackers and a growing militant activist sub-culture. Insurance companies, activist share holders and identify theft victims are exerting tremendous pressure on victimised business to demonstrate a level of care and concern for personal and proprietary data. So, what happens when it all goes completely wrong? Firms will be called upon to demonstrate that “reasonable care” had been taken to secure the disclosed information and the disclosure was not foreseeable. Failure to patch and update systems and maintain robust security against cyber-attacks can have severe financial and reputation consequences.

The role of self-control in the link between prior and future victimization:

This article investigated the effect of self-control on the link between individuals’ prior and future victimization, using panel data across nine years from the Pittsburgh Youth Study. Results showed that for victims with high self-control, prior theft victimization was related to decreased risk of later theft victimization. However, self-control was not related to repeat violent victimization. Control variables related to opportunity structures and delinquent subcultures played a key role in influencing the effect of self-control on the relationship between prior and later victimization. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Virtual World Security Inspection

Virtual property theft is a serious problem that exists in virtual worlds. Legitimate users of these worlds invest considerable amounts of time, effort and real-world money into obtaining virtual property, but unfortunately, are becoming victims of theft in high numbers. It is reported that there are over 1 billion registered users of virtual worlds containing virtual property items worth an estimated US$50 billion dollars. The problem of virtual property theft is complex, involving many legal, social and technological issues. The software used to access virtual worlds is of great importance as they form the primary interface to these worlds and as such the primary interface to conduct virtual property theft. The security vulnerabilities of virtual world applications have not, to date, been examined. This study aims to use the process of software inspection to discover security vulnerabilities that may exist within virtual world software – vulnerabilities that enable virtual property theft to occur. Analyzing three well know virtual world applications World of Warcraft, Guild Wars and Entropia Universe, this research utilized security analysis tools and scenario testing with focus on authentication, trading, intruder detection and virtual property recovery. It was discovered that all three examples were susceptible to keylogging, mail and direct trade methods were the most likely method for transferring stolen items, intrusion detection is of critical concern to all VWEs tested, stolen items were unable to be recovered in all cases and lastly occurrences of theft were undetectable in all cases. The results gained in this study present the key problem areas which need to be addressed to improve security and reduce the occurrence of virtual property theft.

Mid-adolescent victims: (Un)willing for help?

A victimization experience may turn the world of a victim upside down. In the aftermath of the victimization incident, the reactions and help from others may have important effects on the recovery of the victim. The way victims experience and interpret their victimization and how they cope with it can be influenced by the reactions of others. However, before another person can help the victim, or before another person can make the victimization experience even worse due to his or her reaction to the victim, the victim has to tell this person about the victimization experience. This article focuses on the persons and agencies mid-adolescents turn to on becoming a victim. Based on a paper-and-pencil school survey in Ghent, Belgium among 557 14–16-year-old pupils, this study shows that mid-adolescent victims of theft, violence and extortion turn in the first instance to parents and peers. Concerning formal agencies, the results indicate that mid-adolescents are barely aware of the existence of assistance services and that they report victimization to the police only to a small degree.