After taking the survey, participants receive detailed guidance on how to protect themselves on the internet. They also have the opportunity to sign up for a draw to win one of two tablet computers.

“From a criminal point of view, the internet has opened up a range of potential new options. These include hacking, scams, and identity theft to name just a few,” explains Professor Herbert Scheithauer, a professor of psychology at Freie Universität Berlin and one of the authors of the study. He points out that the internet is increasingly used as a vehicle for radical criminal activities, for example, to disseminate ideological messages and hatred, or to obtain money illegally. Professor Scheithauer notes that the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated digitalization processes worldwide, and many people have adapted the way they behave online as a result – which could be good news for cybercrime. Researchers working on the project now want to gather data to show how people in Germany, including both those who have already experienced online crime directly and those who are at risk, are responding to the situation.

The survey forms part of a more extensive research project, PROPHETS, with a consortium comprising 15 partners from ten EU member states. The project partners include four universities, six law enforcement agencies, two non-governmental organizations, and two research organizations, and the project is funded through the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No. 786894.

Its core aim is to understand more about how online radicalization takes place and to help prevent terrorist-related cyber criminality.