Cybercrime and Digital Forensics: An Introduction

by Thomas J. Holt, Adam M. Bossler, Kathryn C. Seigfried-Spellar

This book offers a comprehensive and integrative introduction to cybercrime. It provides an authoritative synthesis of the disparate literature on the various types of cybercrime, the global investigation and detection of cybercrime and the role of digital information, and the wider role of technology as a facilitator for social relationships between deviants and criminals. It includes coverage • key theoretical and methodological perspectives; • computer hacking and malicious software; • digital piracy and intellectual theft; • economic crime and online fraud; • pornography and online sex crime; • cyber-bullying and cyber-stalking; • cyber-terrorism and extremism; • the rise of the Dark Web; • digital forensic investigation and its legal context around the world; • the law enforcement response to cybercrime transnationally; • cybercrime policy and legislation across the globe. The new edition has been revised and updated, featuring two new chapters; the first offering an expanded discussion of cyberwarfare and information operations online, and the second discussing illicit market operations for all sorts of products on both the Open and Dark Web. This book includes lively and engaging features, such as discussion questions, boxed examples of unique events and key figures in offending, quotes from interviews with active offenders, and a full glossary of terms. It is supplemented by a companion website that includes further exercises for students and instructor resources. This text is essential reading for courses on cybercrime, cyber-deviancy, digital forensics, cybercrime investigation, and the sociology of technology.

Genres: Nonfiction

790 pages, Paperback

First published January 23, 2015

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Thomas J. Holt earned a Ph.D. in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Missouri-Saint Louis in 2005 and is the author, co-author and editor of numerous publications.

Reviews

[Teri · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is for the updated version 2017 edition:

I used this book this year for a Cyber Criminology class I teach. It is a good text for an overview/introduction class. The first 10 chapters cover different types of cybercrime such as hacking, cyber terror, digital piracy, and cyberstalking / bullying. Cybersex crimes are also covered and in this 2017 edition, child pornography and sex crimes have been separated out from the adult versions of these crimes. There is one chapter on old school criminology theories / the scientific method and how they apply to the cyber world today. The last chapters cover digital forensics, touching on subjects like spoliation and collecting forensics in the cloud.

This is my second year teaching with this text and I will likely use it again. As with any text, it is going to be quickly outdated, so I hope the authors continue to update the text. It is well laid out with a nice progression between subjects, interspersing historical information as well. Real-world examples are used, but I would have liked more examples that are more in-depth. Another plus is that the book uses technical terms, while clearly explaining terms and concepts for beginners to understand.

I also liked the discussion questions at the end of each chapter. These are thought-provoking questions that have the students thinking beyond what is discussed in that chapter. They made great essay questions for tests. If you are an instructor, the publisher has a website with extra material that can be used in the classroom, such as Powerpoint presentations and test questions.

[Teri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I used this book this year for a Cyber Criminology class I teach. It is a good text for an overview / introduction class. The first 8 chapters cover different types of cybercrime such as hacking, cyber terror, digital piracy, and cyber stalking / bullying. Cyber sex crimes are also covered. There is one chapter on old school criminology theories / the scientific method and how they apply today to the cyber world today. The last four chapters cover digital forensics, touching on subjects like spoliation and collecting forensics in the cloud.

This is my first year teaching with this text and I will likely use it again. As with any text, it is going to be quickly outdated, so I hope they do an updated version soon. It is well laid out with a nice progression between subjects, interspersing historical information as well. Real world examples are used, but I would have like more examples that are more in depth. Another plus is that the book uses technical terms, while clearly explaining terms and concepts for beginners to understand.

I also liked the discussion questions at the end of each chapter. These are thought provoking questions that have the students thinking beyond what is discussed in that chapter. They made great essay questions for tests. If you are an instructor, the publisher has a website with extra material that can be used in the classroom, such as Powerpoint presentations and test questions.