Victims' motivations for reporting to the 'fraud justice network'

It is well-established that (online) fraud has one of the lowest reporting rates across all crime categories. However, there is a large gap examining why some victims choose to report online fraud offenses. Therefore, this paper examines the under-researched group of online fraud victims who reporte...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPolice practice & research Vol. 19; no. 6; pp. 550 - 564
Main Author Cross, Cassandra
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Abingdon Routledge 02.11.2018
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Altruism
Crime
crime reporting
Cybercrime
Fraud
justice
Motivation
Online fraud
police
Police reports
Victims
Victims of crime
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Summary:It is well-established that (online) fraud has one of the lowest reporting rates across all crime categories. However, there is a large gap examining why some victims choose to report online fraud offenses. Therefore, this paper examines the under-researched group of online fraud victims who reported their crimes to authorities. Based on interviews with 80 victims across Australia, who lost at least AUD10,000 to online fraud, this paper demonstrates two motivations behind reporting: a sense of individual justice, and an altruistic notion of protecting others. The paper also highlights the negativity associated with the reporting process. The paper uses these findings to determine what can be learnt from the victims who were willing to report. It concludes with a discussion of the challenges evident in seeking to improve the confidence of victims reporting to authorities.
ISSN:1561-4263
1477-271X
DOI:10.1080/15614263.2018.1507891