Cyber crime is an umbrella term for all criminal acts that exploit modern information technology and electronic infrastructures. Criminals are coming up with new cyber crimes all the time. As our society becomes ever-more digital, new IT applications are making their way into our everyday lives. These new applications inevitably come with some security risks.

The most common types of cyber crime include:

• Malware (and all subtypes) and Emotet
• Identify theft through doxing
• Spam and phishing
• Botnets
• Social engineering

According to the Digital Barometer 2020, one in four German citizens has been a victim of cyber crime. Around a third of those affected have suffered actual financial damage as a result. Interestingly, victims of cyber crime do not necessarily ramp up their security after falling victim to an attack. But protecting your own accounts and devices is essential - not only to protect yourself, but also to prevent malware from being disseminated from your device without your knowledge.

Who is responsible for cyber crime?

In Germany, responsibility for tackling cyber crime lies with the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) or the relevant State Criminal Police Offices (LKA) in each of the states. In general, if you fall victim to a crime, you should always report it. To do so, contact your local police station. By reporting crimes, you give the authorities an opportunity to prosecute those responsible and allow them to build up an accurate picture of the current crime landscape.

The Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) is tasked with providing information on the threat landscape associated with cyber crime and sharing preventive actions and tips to ensure that you can respond quickly and appropriately in the event of damage.

What types of cyber crime are taking place at the moment?

Cyber crime usually aims to actively infect information technology systems with malware, or to get others to unwittingly provide access. The aim of the perpetrators is:

• to gain access to usernames and passwords or personal data.
• to encrypt files and data and then to extort money from their owners for their return.
• to gain control of a system.

Even though there is no completely fail-safe way to protect yourself against cyber attacks, we recommend that you remain vigilant at all times when using e-mail, always install the latest security updates as soon as they are available, and keep your virus protection up to date.
On the next few pages, we explain how you can protect yourself and what you should do if you do fall victim to a cyber attack.