This article investigates whether cyber delinquent behaviour of school friends, other offline friends and online contacts is related to cyber delinquent behaviour of individuals, and whether this relation differs for cyber dependent, cyber enabled and traditional crime. We used both direct and indirect measures of cyber delinquency of friends. We employed data from the first wave of a large-scale study on the causes of online delinquency among Dutch juveniles (n=889; mean age=16.8 years). The results suggest that both direct and indirect measures of levels of friend delinquency were related to levels of individual cyber offending. However, indirect measures had a stronger association with individual online delinquency than direct measures. This suggests that respondents make incorrect estimates of their friends’ levels of online delinquency. Moreover, no differences were found in the strength of the relation between individual online offending and indirect measures of online offending of school friends, offline friends and online friends. This suggests that friends of different types all play an important role in individual online offending.

This article focuses on the ways the NVU, Pegida and Voorpost - three far-right groups from the Netherlands - make use of social media platforms in the year 2017. Our results show that these extreme right-wing groups use social media to spread their ideology, to construct a group identity, and to call for (democratic) forms of resistances. In addition, our findings illustrate that these far-right groups seem to adjust to their digital surroundings: they do not change or conceal their extremist ideas, but rather manage their online content to ensure that their ideologies can be disseminated through social media.

This contribution reflects on the criminological meaning of the still ongoing trend of digitalisation. What does this mean for crime as a phenomenon and for the explanation of criminal behaviour? Not only did we see the emergence of new types of offending, also the context of crime has changed. In principle, the underlying explanatory processes can remain the same, but their application in the online world is complex and deserves further attention. Online social interactions are not only important for online crime, but also for traditional offenses. However, systematic research on how this actually takes place is scarce.

If, as criminologists, we really want to contribute to solutions for the great challenges of our time, we should be…surfing more. In a dynamic environment full of contradictions, we should be constantly in motion, moving left and right between different theoretical-normative perspectives as well as between methodological perspectives. This paper clarifies that surfing movement with some illustrations. It then proposes three goals for a criminological research agenda that should help us address the great challenges: actual (as opposed to superficial) relevance for practice, causal ambitions and multidisciplinarity. The paper concludes with some reflections about the organization and funding of criminological research.

The present article examines the financial life of 131 jihadi travellers (JTs), also known as foreign terrorist fighters, from the Netherlands. For the purpose of the research, access was acquired to all their banking transactions in the year preceding their departure: over 60,000 transactions in total. Their income from work or employment, various forms of social assistance, student grants, and other income or expenditure were examined. The data provided a good picture of their financial independence, i.e., the extent to which they were capable of making their own living or needed to claim assistance from the authorities. The analysis shows that it is highly exceptional for Dutch JTs to be financially independent. Only 5 percent have sufficient income from work or employment without making any claims on the government for financial assistance, and are free of mounting debts. The low score can for a large part be explained by the fact that almost half of the JTs are under 23 years of age and/or receive a student grant. Their financial picture largely resembles ordinary students. Older JTs (over 22 years of age, and not having received a student grant for at least one year) underperform, however. Only 9 percent are financially independent. Financial support could perhaps be used to monitor or steer recipients’ role in society.

Criminal groups have traditionally been the focus of criminological research because of the collective dimension of many criminal activities or deviance. However, what constitutes a ‘criminal group’ or how specific criminal groups, like gangs, should be defined, remains open for discussion in the scientific literature. This introductory article highlights a number of recent developments illustrating the blurring boundaries between various criminal groups as defined by both insiders and outsiders. In addition, it suggests that the rise of social media and smartphones is changing the structure and dynamics of criminal groups. Future research should focus on how these (new) criminal groups originate, develop and function, but should also address the role of the group in criminal activities.

Professionals dealing with crises are more or less forced to a next level of crisis communication and crisis management. This is because of the influence of social media. Messages on Twitter, Facebook and other social media can have a significant impact on the course of developments during a crisis. Sometimes in a positive way, when help is mobilized quickly and people can be informed almost instantly. On other occasions the impact is more negative, when for instance rumors lead to false accusations or threats. In the past several years, crisis management authorities have built up more experience with the use and application of social media and monitoring tools. There are still cases where officials and professionals are taken by surprise because of the shift stream of messages and their impact on public opinion and crisis control. But also lessons have been learned, e.g. in terms of online and offline reactions, cooperation with the public, and rumor control.
This article gives an overview of research results in literature and summarizes the outcomes of a case study research project.

Some ten years ago, victim-offender mediation was introduced for the first time in EU-legislation through article 10 of the 2001 framework decision on the standing of victims in criminal proceedings. In 2012 this framework decision was replaced by a more extensive directive establishing minimum standards for victims of crime. This article examines the position of restorative justice in this new legal instrument. The outcome is mixed. The emphasis on safeguards in case restorative justice is applied is a positive move towards good practices, but it is disappointing that a right to access restorative justice services was not adopted.

Felson introduced the concept of offender convergence settings in his articles on situational crime prevention. He refers to physical locations where criminals get together to relax, share information, fence stolen goods, plot new crimes, etc. Such places come in the form of restaurants and cafes that are in the hands of the ‘underworld’, but may equally well consist of deserted schoolyards where unruly adolescents gather. According to Felson, such settings facilitate the committing of crimes and enable the creation of structure and continuity in criminal networks.
In this article the authors argue that virtual meeting places also exist that can be labeled as offender convergence settings. To demonstrate this, a case study regarding a so-called ‘carding’ forum is used. Carding is a term from the world of cybercrime and refers to the set of techniques by which personal financial information is acquired, traded and abused by criminals. Through a qualitative and a quantitative analysis of the carding forum, the possibilities for cyber criminals to come into contact with each other, co-offending, and the durability of the criminal network is analyzed.

Analysing large amounts of data goes to the heart of the challenges confronting intelligence and law enforcement professionals today. Increasingly, this involves Internet data that are ‘open source’ or ‘publicly available’. Projects such as the European FP7 VIRTUOSO aim at developing platforms for open-source intelligence by law enforcement and public security, which open up opportunities for large-scale, automated data gathering and analysis. However, the mere fact that data are publicly available does not imply an absence of restrictions to researching them. This paper investigates one area of legal constraints, namely Dutch criminal-procedure law in relation to open-source data gathering by the police. Which legal basis is there for this activity? And under what conditions can foreign open sources be investigated?
After sketching the context of the VIRTUOSO project and legal constraints of open-source intelligence in general, this paper discusses provisions of the Dutch Police Act 1993 and the Code of Criminal Procedure to determine which is the correct legal basis for gathering data from openly accessible and semi-open sources. Next, cross-border gathering of data is discussed on the basis of article 32 of the Cybercrime Convention. The paper draws the conclusion that investigating open sources by the police will often go beyond what is allowed on the basis of the general task description of the police (art. 2 Police Act 1993); hence, an order from the Public Prosecutor for systematic observation or intelligence is required. Moreover, the tools used must meet the non-manipulability and auditing requirements of the Dutch Decree on Technical Devices in Criminal Procedure.

This article describes the findings of a national representative survey on online victimization. The survey was conducted in the Netherlands in 2011 amongst youth aged 10 to 18. Purpose of this research is to identify various risk factors related to cyber bullying, online sexual activities and online financial crime (e.g. e-fraude and commercial deceit). More than 9 percent of the youths had negative experiences with cyber bullying, about 5 percent with e-fraude and over 11 percent with commercial deceit. Also unwanted online sexual solicitations (6%) and unwanted exposure to sexually explicit internet material (12%) occurred with some regularity.
This research complements earlier research on youth victimization in two important respects. First, we paid explicit attention to determine whether the youngster experienced the online incident as negative, neutral or positive. Our strategy to address negative experiences ensures the identification of actual victims. Secondly, we made it possible to identify and compare risk factors on various types of online crime. Girls are more likely to be cyber bullied, to receive unwanted sexual solicitations and to be unwantedly exposed to online pornography, whilst boys are more at risk to be commercially deceived or scammed.
Internet use and behaviour are significant risk factors to comprehend online victimization. Above average use of instant messaging and clicking on (advertising) hyperlinks without restraint, are important predictors for online victimization. Finally, online disinhibition - a loosening of social restrictions during interactions with others on the Internet - and low self-control, turn out to be significant risk factors.
It is difficult to accept certain risks, especially when youth are involved. However, children have to learn themselves to assess risks, to deal with them and to learn from them. It is important youths built up resilience to adequately react on negative online incidents and to reduce online vulnerability.

Rape drugs (or drink spiking) discourse reflects gender stereotypes in a much more differentiated way than previous studies suppose. Quantitative and qualitative analysis of news items and online discussions proved stereotypes of ideal female victims and male perpetrators to be most prominent in news media. Postings to online bulletin boards were more skeptical about the alleged victims’ innocence and truthfulness. Studies in this area that focus on news media and institutional discourse overestimate the predominance of the ideal victim stereotype. In order to correct this bias, the authors urge criminologists to be more attentive to the relevance and power of informal crime stories and discussions, particularly those appearing in social media.

Consumer fraud seems to be widespread, yet little research is devoted to understanding why certain social groups are more vulnerable to this type of victimization than others. The present paper deals with internet consumer fraud victimization, and uses an explanatory model that combines insights from self control theory and routine activity theory. The results from large-scale victimization survey data among the Dutch general population (N=6,201) reveal that people with low self-control run substantially higher victimization risk, as well as people performing ‘risky’ routine activities, such as online shopping and participation in online forums. Though a minority share of the self-control-victimization link is indirect – because people with low self-control are more involved in risk-enhancing routine activities – a large direct effect on internet fraud victimization remains. This suggests that, within similar situations, people with poor impulse control respond differently to deceptive online commercial offers.

The distribution of child pornography on the internet is observed as a major social problem. In the Netherlands a lively political-social discussion has emerged concerning the manner in which this can be prevented. The discussion moves between two polarities. On the one hand the dangers of internet censure are emphasised and on the other hand the need for a clamp down in which every measure seems to be justified. The present government wants to combat child pornography and by doing so answer the moral indignation of society. A means that the Dutch government, and on her behalf the police, uses, is blocking websites with child-pornographic content. The possibilities of the Dutch government to filter effectively, however, are restricted. The accuracy of existing filters is low and it is easy to get around filters. In addition, opportunities are restricted by constitutional rights. A filter that stops all websites with child pornography is bound to stop legal internet traffic too. That is at odds with the constitutional rights of freedom of expression and freedom of information gathering. The realisation of a filter that respects fundamental rights and still is able to block child pornography requires a lot of police manpower. This comes at the expense of the tracking down of criminals who produce and distribute child pornography. Furthermore, it is unknown whether the use of the child-pornography filter leads to the purposes for which they are deployed, such as hindering the sale of child pornography or reducing the abuse of children. The police, therefore, is assigned to a task that requires a considerable amount of time, but the benefits of which are unclear.