An Investigation of Youth in Cybercrime in the Ayawaso East Constituency of Greater Accra

Abstract

Cybercrime, an offence that is committed against individuals through the internet, has bedevilled the global online industry as well as the reputation of countries. All efforts to combat it has proven futile. The need to investigate it thoroughly and bring about ways of combating it and policing the online space necessitated the study to be conducted. This study investigated the causes, modus operandi, and the state of intelligence of the menace. Methodologically, the study used mixed approach (mix of quantitative and qualitative methods) to sample 111 participants (11 key informants, 60 youths engaged in cybercrime, and 40 community members faced with cybercrime issues) in Ayawaso East Constituency to derive the primary data for the attainment of the study objectives. The findings based on analytical evidence showed that, demographic characteristics of respondents has an influence on cybercrime. In addition, it was established that, employment, computer illiteracy, and moral principles which bears on awareness creation and education on cybercrime help people to restrain from the influencing factors that push others into cybercrime practices. Moreover, the study demonstrated that policing cybercrime is a big challenge for the security agencies as well as the affected communities. Conclusively, cyber-crime presents enormous challenges to society, especially developing societies that are trying to catch-up with the technology revolution, yet are relatively weaker to respond to the challenges of this development. The study recommended partnership, improvement in law enforcement, and adoption of best practices (such as sophisticated ITC technologies) from countries that have been able tackle cybercrime issues to address the menace in Ghana.