Cybercrime is used to describe ways of offending using technology.

A broad range of crime types can be cybercrime, including crimes against the person (such as stalking and extortion) and against property (such as hacking and online scams).

Cybercrime that targets networked devices (including computers, smart phones and smart watches, and tablets), such as hacking and denial of service attacks, is described as cyber-dependent crime, because without computing technology these offences cannot be committed.

Technology-enabled crimes are offence types that can occur without technology, but often see an increased scale, reach or harm by the use of technology in how they are committed. For example, frauds and scams, identity crime, child abuse, stalking and harassment, family violence and politically and ideologically motivated violence.

The most common reasons people commit cybercrime is to cause harm to, or receive a benefit at the expense of a victim.

Technology may also be incidental to a crime. For example, an offender might arrange to commit a crime by mobile phone, or it might place them at a crime scene. In this instance, the mobile phone and its offence-related contents are vital pieces of digital evidence for police.

^{1 World Economic Forum, 2020, The Global Risks Report http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Global_Risk_Report_2020.pdf}

The Victoria Police Act 2013 legislates that our role is to serve the Victorian community and uphold the law to promote a safe, secure and orderly society.

In relation to cybercrime, our mission is to provide a modern policing service to help build a cyber safe and secure Victoria.

We aim to reduce harm by lowering instances of cybercrime, holding offenders to account, and helping victims recover.

The Victoria Police Cybercrime Strategy 2022–2027 delivers the strategic plan to achieve our mission. Through this plan Victoria Police will fulfil our roles and functions to address cybercrime and work with our partners to achieve improved community safety outcomes.

The Strategy provides a roadmap for all employees of the organisation so that they understand how their role and work aligns to the overarching mission to tackle cybercrime and produce better outcomes for Victoria.

Cybercrime does not respect national borders. Offenders and victims do not need to be in the same place. Cybercrime can strike anywhere, against anyone who is connected to the internet.

Industry estimates that cybercrime will cost the world USD$10.5 trillion annually by 2025.²

Victoria is not immune to the global threat of cybercrime. Victoria’s relative wealth, high saturation of digital connections and growing reliance on the internet make it an attractive target for cybercriminals.

Cybercrime is recognised nationally as a key facilitator of serious and organised crime, and is a national security concern.³

Cyberattacks on critical infrastructure or serious cyber security emergencies may result in significant harm for all or part of the Victorian community.

In extreme circumstances, these attacks may result in loss of life and extensive damage to property, infrastructure or the environment. For example, in 2019, ransomware disrupted health service providers and hospitals in Gippsland and south-west Victoria, delaying surgeries and other medical services.

Approximately a quarter of cyber security reports to the Australian Cyber Security Centre during the 2020–21 financial year were associated with Australia’s critical infrastructure or essential services.⁸

Criminals, including serious and organised crime groups in Victoria, use the anonymising features of cryptocurrency to facilitate a range of offending, such as drug trafficking and money laundering.

This creates additional challenges for Victoria Police’s ability to detect, investigate and prosecute such crimes.

There is significant growth in Victoria Police’s demand for digital forensic services to collect digital evidence, as technology is increasingly used to commit different crimes. 

Our partners include:

• Academia
• Australian Cyber Security Centre
• Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation
• Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission
• Australian Government
• AUSTRAC
• Commonwealth and other state and territory law enforcement agencies
• Communities
• Industry
• International law enforcement partners
• Office of the eSafety Commissioner
• Support services
• Victorian Government

^{2 CyberSecurity Ventures, 2020, Cybercrime to Cost the World $10. Trillion Annually by 2025, https://cybersecurityventures.com/hackerpocalypse-cybercrime-report-201…}

^{3 Department of Home Affairs, December 2020, Discussion Paper: National Plan to Combat Cybercrime; Victoria Police, October 2020, Crime Command Review: Technology-Enabled Crime Building Capability.}

^{4 Australian Cyber Security Centre, 2021, ACSC Annual Cyber Threat Report: 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021}

^{5 Australian Cyber Security Centre, 2021, ACSC Annual Cyber Threat Report: 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021}

^{6 ReportCyber}

^{7 ReportCyber}

^{8 Australian Cyber Security Centre, 2021, ACSC Annual Cyber Threat Report: 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021}

^{9 eSafety Commissioner, Children and Technology-Facilitated Abuse in Domestic and Family Violence Situations, https://www.esafety.gov.au/about-us/research/children-and-technology-fa…}

^{10 INTERPOL, 2017, Global Cybercrime Strategy: Summary, https://www.interpol.int/content/download/5586/file/Summary_CYBER_Strat…}

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated society’s reliance on digital technology.

People are spending more time online and are reliant on technology to perform a range of everyday tasks: from working, to socialising with family and friends, to attending medical appointments and purchasing groceries.

With more time spent online, Australians are increasingly vulnerable to cybercrime.

^{11 Australian Cyber Security Centre, 2021, ACSC Annual Cyber Threat Report: 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021}

^{12 Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Targeting Scams: Report of the ACCC on scams activity 2020, https://www.accc.gov.au/system/files/Targeting%20scams%20-%20report%20o…} 

^{13 Department of Home Affairs, December 2020, Discussion Paper: National Plan to Combat Cybercrime.}

Cybercrime causes large losses and widespread harm to the Victorian community.

Victims of cybercrime can suffer a range of harms, including financial, physical and sexual. Victims can also suffer serious psychological, emotional and social harms that can have a long-lasting impact on the victim. Victims can experience reputational damage, which can affect their personal and professional lives and cause serious mental health trauma.

Cybercrime also has significant economic costs.

The Australian Federal Police estimates that business email compromise scams – a cybercrime technique where legitimate funds transfers are redirected to alternative accounts – cost Australian businesses more than $79 million in the 2020–2021 financial year. 

^{14 Coen Teunissen, Isabella Voce and Russell Smith, 2021, Estimating the cost of pure cybercrime to Australian individuals. Statistical Bulletin no. 34. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology.}

^{15 Coen Teunissen, Isabella Voce and Russell Smith, 2021, Estimating the cost of pure cybercrime to Australian individuals. Statistical Bulletin no. 34.}

^{16 Coen Teunissen, Isabella Voce and Russell Smith, 2021, Estimating the cost of pure cybercrime to Australian individuals. Statistical Bulletin no. 34. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology.}

^{17 Department of Home Affairs, December 2020, Discussion Paper: National Plan to Combat Cybercrime}

Online grooming

Online child grooming is befriending a child, and sometimes the family, to make the child more open to sexual abuse. A person who is found guilty of grooming in Victoria is liable to 10 years imprisonment.

Online scams

Romance and dating scams involve scammers taking advantage of people looking for romantic partners, often via dating websites, apps or social media, by pretending to be prospective companions. They play on emotional triggers to extract money, gifts or personal details.

Romance baiting encourages victims to take advantage of a fake investment opportunity.

Ransomware

Ransomware is a form of extortion using malicious software (malware) that prevents users from accessing their system or personal files and demands ransom payment in order to regain access.

The Australian Cyber Security Centre advises against paying ransoms. Payment of the ransom may increase an individual or organisation’s vulnerability to future ransomware incidents. In addition, there is no guarantee that payment will undo the damage.

The Australian Cyber Security Centre has observed cybercriminals successfully using ransomware to disrupt operations and cause reputational damage to Australian organisations across a range of sectors:

• Health
• State and Territory governments
• Transport
• Education and research organisations
• Retail

The Australian Cyber Security Centre reported a 15% increase in ransomware cybercrime reports in the 2020–21 financial year.²¹

Malware and intimate image abuse

Image-based sexual abuse is the creation, distribution or threatened distribution of intimate, nude or sexual image or videos, without the consent of the person pictured. This includes images or videos that have been digitally altered using specialised software.

You can also report image-based abuse to the eSafety Commissioner.

Deepfakes use artificial intelligence software to learn from large numbers of images or recordings of a person to create an extremely realistic but false depiction of them doing or saying something that they did not actually do or say.²⁴

^{18 Australian Competition & Consumer Commission, 12 February 2021, Romance Baiting Scams on the Rise, https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/romance-baiting-scams-on-the-rise}

^{19 Australian Competition & Consumer Commission, 12 February 2021, Romance Baiting Scams on the Rise, https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/romance-baiting-scams-on-the-rise}

^{20 Australian Competition & Consumer Commission, 12 February 2021, Romance Baiting Scams on the Rise, https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/romance-baiting-scams-on-the-rise}

^{21 Australian Cyber Security Centre, 2021, ACSC Annual Cyber Threat Report: 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021}

^{22 Office of the eSafety Commissioner, October 2017, Image-Based Abuse, National Survey: Summary Report (October 2017) https://www.esafety.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-07/Image-based-abus…}

^{23 Office of the eSafety Commissioner, October 2017, Image-Based Abuse, National Survey: Summary Report (October 2017) https://www.esafety.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-07/Image-based-abus…}

^{24 eSafety Commissioner, Deepfake trends and challenges — position statement, https://www.esafety.gov.au/about-us/tech-trends-and-challenges/deepfakes}

For Victoria Police to effectively perform our roles to tackle cybercrime and help achieve a cyber safe and secure Victoria, we have set five strategic priorities.

The priorities will guide how we work across our organisation, with our partners and with the community over the next five years.

These strategic priorities rely upon five critical enablers, which will make it possible for us to deliver the needed outcomes for Victoria.

Victoria Police Cybercrime Strategy

Victoria Police's Cybercrime Strategy's strategic priorities are to prevent, report, support victims, investigate and disrupt.

The strategy's critical enablers are legislative reform, building our frontline and specialist capability, collaborating with our partners, investing in technology and infrastructure, and innovation and continuous improvement.

Empowering the Victorian community with information to reduce their risk of becoming a victim of cybercrime is a vital component of prevention.

Our role

Victoria Police will actively work with our partners to raise awareness and educate the community about the threat of cybercrime so that all parts of our community feel empowered to protect themselves.

We understand that our role in prevention is a shared responsibility. We will strengthen the relationships with our law enforcement, government and non-government organisation partners to support new approaches to cybercrime prevention, cyber safety and cyber security awareness campaigns.

Together, we will build Victoria’s cyber awareness and reduce our community members’ risk of becoming a victim of cybercrime.

We will...

• Partner with key Victorian and Commonwealth agencies (including the Victorian Department of Education and Training) to coordinate awareness raising efforts and provide practical advice on cybercrime, cyber security and cyber safety, tailored to individuals, families, business and industry.
• Work with our partners to ensure our prevention messaging is nationally consistent.
• Work with industry and businesses to support prevention efforts.
• Develop and deliver new, accessible cybercrime and risk mitigation resources for the Victorian community (both online and available in stations).
• Publish timely and relevant crime prevention advice for critical, common and hot topic cybercrime types through various communications channels.
• Publish accessible prevention resources to support the diversity of Victoria’s community.

So that...

• Individuals, families, businesses, industry and government are empowered with a better understanding of cybercrime, their vulnerability and key risk mitigation strategies.

What will success look like?

• The Victorian community has a better understanding of cybercrime vulnerability and how they can protect themselves.
• Victoria Police works collaboratively with strategic partners to support a range of effective prevention activities.

Victoria police will simplify and streamline the process for reporting cybercrime.

Victoria Police understands that many individuals, families and businesses are reluctant to report a cybercrime to police.

The processes for reporting and investigation can at times be unclear or difficult to navigate, so we are committed to making these easier to access and use.

Our role

Victoria Police will make reporting cybercrime easier for all Victorians.

We will equip our frontline and specialists with the knowledge, skills and protocols they need to provide a consistent service to cybercrime victims.

We will continue to work with our national partners to make online reporting easier.

We will...

• Reform the way Victoria Police reports, records, triages and actions cybercrime.
• Work with our key federal and state law enforcement, government, non-government and industry partners to ensure Victorians can easily understand how to report cybercrime.
• Ensure that when Victorians report a cybercrime they are provided clear information on how Victoria Police or our interstate police partners will respond.
• Develop and implement consistent protocols for responding to reports of cybercrime, centrally and locally, online and in-person.
• Work with our partners to develop official crime statistics for cybercrime. Public crime statistics will let the Victorian Government and community know how much cybercrime affects Victorians and show our progress against our mission.
• Leverage Victoria Police data to identify, communicate, prevent and target cybercrime trends.

So that...

• Victorians know how to and can easily report cybercrime.
• Victoria Police efficiently and consistently respond to reports of cybercrime, supporting better victim service delivery experiences and outcomes.
• Victim liaison, and communication following a report is efficient, consistent and meets community expectations.

What will success look like?

• Victoria Police responds to cybercrime reports efficiently and consistently according to victim type.
• Victorians are clear about Victoria Police’s or our interstate police partner’s response.
• Victoria Police is able to respond to emerging challenges through the use of enhanced intelligence to identify trends in reporting.

Victoria police is committed to enhancing the way we support victims of cybercrime—whether victims are individuals, families, business of any size or government.

Victims of cybercrime in Victoria have not always been offered consistent, high-quality support. Victims have also not always been aware of the value of reporting cybercrime to Victoria Police, or the type of support that is available to them.

Our role

Victoria Police is committed to its core role in providing a victim-centric policing service for all victims of crime–including cybercrime. We will work to enhance service delivery for those in need of assistance after becoming victims of cybercrime.

We acknowledge that different types of victims—individuals, families, small and medium business, industry and government— will require different types of assistance and support from Victoria Police.

We acknowledge that victim-centric policing in the context of cybercrime means further enhancing understanding of cybercrime across the organisation.

We are committed to ensuring that every member of Victoria Police has the right skills and knowledge to provide high-quality, consistent victim support, regardless of crime type or method of reporting.

We will continue to consult with the community and our partners to continuously improve our referral approaches to meet victim expectations and respond to emerging cybercrime trends.

Victim support can be enhanced through collaboration with our partners.

Victoria Police will strengthen our relationships and identify opportunities to improve victim support across the system.

We will...

• Ensure victims of cybercrime are provided with timely and relevant advice, support and follow up.
• Better equip our employees with the expertise and knowledge to police cybercrime.
• Use data to identify trends in cybercrime and use this analysis to aid our victim support work and that of our partners.
• Consult with the community to better understand what victims of cybercrime need.
• Work with our government and industry partners to ensure all Victorians have access to appropriate and timely victim supports.
• Work with our partners to identify victim support service available across the country to enable us to support interstate victims.
• Publish accessible versions of victim support advice and resources for diverse community members.

So that...

• Victoria Police takes a victim-centric policing approach to responding to cybercrime and supporting victims.
• Victims receive an excellent service delivery response and are supported to understand their options for help.
• Victims understand cybercrime, how it is policed, their risks of repeat victimisation, and how to prevent further victimisation.

What will success look like?

• Victoria Police delivers high-quality, consistent support that meets the needs of different victims.
• Strengthened partnerships and enhanced victim support delivered through a collaborative approach.

Victoria Police is committed to continuous improvement of our cybercrime investigation practices to adapt to emerging needs.

Approaches to investigation need to respond to new technology and the evolution of cybercrime to effectively prosecute cyber-dependent and technology enabled crime.

Victoria Police will continue to focus on its policing capabilities to respond to cybercrime—from frontline members to specialist units.

A renewed focus in specialist knowledge, skills and policing techniques will be complemented by a dedicated investment in digital forensic technology across the organisation, given the increasing importance of digital evidence to so many crimes. For example, a smart phone might contain evidence of the crime, it might place an offender at a crime scene or exonerate them.

Our role

Victoria Police has responsibility for investigating cybercrime committed against the Victorian community, whether by Victorians or those elsewhere.

It is our job to carry out the policing mission in Victoria's Cyber Strategy 2021 and support the National Plan to Combat Cybercrime.

We will enhance how Victoria Police pursues investigative activities (including evidence gathering) for cybercrime to maximise the impact on cybercrime and provide better outcomes for victims.

We will continuously improve our approaches to emerging technical challenges such as cryptocurrencies, encryption, darknets and other advancements.

We will...

• Continue to build the cybercrime capabilities of our workforce.
• Pursue investigations into cybercrime that targets Victoria, whether by Victorians or those elsewhere. We will identify cybercrime causing most harm to communities and design investigations for greatest impact.
• Partner with other law enforcement agencies to support contemporary, coordinated and responsive investigative practice.
• Continue to invest in our specialist capabilities through targeted, alternative recruitment pathways and professional development strategies, and where appropriate, draw on our partnerships to support this process.
• Ensure our investments in technology and infrastructure support contemporary investigative practice across the organisation.

So that...

• Cybercrime investigations are efficient, targeted and outcomes-focused.

What will success look like?

• Victoria Police pursue targeted, efficient and outcomes-focused cybercrime investigations.
• Victoria Police has the right capability, infrastructure and technology to investigate cybercrime and support successful prosecutions.

Disruption of cybercrime activity is one of the most effective strategies to prevent victimisation and reduce levels of community harm.

It is critical to stop cybercriminals before they cause more harm, to more people.

Not all cybercrime offenders can be brought before Victorian courts, either because they are as yet unidentified or are overseas. In these cases, Victoria Police will disrupt the crime to protect the community.

Disruption is achieved when intentional action leads to an offender being unable to operate at its usual level of activity, or when the number of future victims is reduced, for a period of time.

Our role

Ethical disruption of criminal activity is a core element of Victoria Police’s prevention and response functions.

Victoria Police already uses disruption for a range of technology-enabled offences, such as online child abuse.

We will continue to enhance our policing capabilities and work with our national and international law enforcement partners to ensure that we can disrupt existing and emerging types of cyber-dependent and technology-enabled crime. We will pursue disruption activity that is appropriate and effective.

We will...

• Continue to build capability to work with our interstate, national and international partners to pursue tactical, high-impact offshore and onshore disruption activities.
• Continue to use the most contemporary policing techniques to disrupt cybercrime.
• Continue to invest in our specialist capabilities for cybercrime disruption through targeted, alternative recruitment pathways and professional development strategies.
• Ensure we have the right standards, oversight and accountability, and public reassurance for cybercrime disruptions.
• Pursue new and innovative partnerships with industry to disrupt cybercrime.

So that...

• We disrupt and prevent instances of victimisation and reduce levels of cybercrime harm affecting the Victorian community.

What will success look like?

• Victoria Police disrupts cybercrime and reduces its harm to the Victorian community.
• Victoria Police continue to coordinate with other law enforcement agencies to pursue tactical, high-impact disruption activities.
• Victoria Police works proactively with industry to pursue disruption activities.

Realising our strategic priorities relies on a number of critical enablers.

Victoria Police will work with our partners—including law enforcement, government and industry—to leverage our capacity to prevent, disrupt and respond to existing and emerging cybercrime threats, and to provide the best possible support to victims.

Keeping Victorians safe from cybercrime starts with information and advice.

Victorian Police encourages all members of our community and across industries to educate themselves so that they are cyber aware and can protect themselves and their businesses when online.

If you are a victim of cybercrime… report it!

Australian Cyber Security Centre hosts ReportCyber, an online portal for reporting cybercrime incidents, on behalf of Australian law enforcement agencies.

The portal is designed for individuals, businesses, large organisations and government agencies to report a variety of cybercrimes. Reports are referred to the appropriate police agency.

Go to: cyber.gov.au/report