INTRODUCTION
There
has been remarkable development achieved in the cyberspace over the years which
is very commendable. Just as the benefits of technology and the internet have
greatly enhanced society and life itself by addressing issues, providing
solutions, and making things easy for people, cyber crime
has skyrocketed all over the world. Criminality and crime have been linked to
man since his fall. Crime is illusive, and it will stop at nothing to stifle
development. Several communities have used various techniques to combat crime,
depending on the nature of the crime. One thing is certain: a society with a
high crime rate can not prosper or expand. This is
the case since crime is the polar opposite of growth. It has a detrimental
effect on society and the economy as a whole.
Communication is an important component of
human life. Communication, society, technology, and humans are all intertwined
since man is a communicative creature by nature; consequently, communication
must be used as a strategic instrument to progress man and society. A
communication strategy is a collection of active communication tools designed
to elicit specific responses from the target audience. A successful
communication strategy takes into account the message to be delivered, the
medium to be used, the target audience and feedback. The message must be clear,
accurate, and reliable, and it must be presented via a media that can
effectively reach the intended audience. Communication methods are critical
because they help to prevent and reduce social vices. In instances when people
have the opportunity to change their ways of life, communication can be used to
persuade and influence individuals through social mobilization, as well as to
aid in changing behaviours through education and
change management (Servaes, 2008). Bayelsa is a Nigerian state located in the south of the
country, at the heart of the Niger Delta. Its population is estimated to be
around 1,704,515 people (NPC 2006).
The Yenagoa Metropolis is Bayelsa
State's capital and one of the state's eight local government areas. The state,
like the rest of the world, is dealing with the social vice of cyber crime, which is spreading like wildfire among young
people.
Statement of Problem
The
notion of communication, as well as its tactics, has been sidelined and
significantly disregarded in Yenagoa metropolis, Bayelsa state, throughout the years, despite the fact that
it is a crucial instrument for development. Despite its capacity to bringing
about positive society change, communication is generally undervalued. Despite
the fact that communication has been proved to be beneficial and important in
change and development, many people still do not recognize or understand its
importance in progress. Communication is usually overlooked as a critical component
of social change. This paper looks at development communication strategies and
the eradication of cyber crime in Yenagoa,
Bayelsa state.
Objectives of the
Study
The
following formed the objectives of the study which are to:
·
Access
the perception of youths in Yenegoa metropolis on cyber crime.
·
Analyze
the extent to which youths in Yenegoa metropolis
engage in cyber crime.
·
Examine
the gratification youths in Yenagoa metropolis derive
from exposure to cyber crime.
·
Investigate
how development communication can eradicate cyber crime
among youths in Yenagoa metropolis.
Research Questions
What are the
perceptions of youths in Yenagoa metropolis on cyber crime?
To what extent do
youths in Yenagoa metropolis engage in cyber crime?
What are the
gratifications youths in Yenagoa metropolis derive
from exposure to cyber crime?
How can development
communication eradicate cyber crime among youths in Yenagoa metropolis?
Theoretical
Framework.
Abend (2008) as cited by
Swanson (2013) retouched that: “theories are formulated to explain, predict,
and understand phenomena and, in many cases, to challenge and extend existing
knowledge within the limits of critical bounding assumptions”. The theoretical
framework describes and provides theories that seek to explain the research.
The theories used to form the foundation of this research are:
Development Communication Theory
Social Learning Theory
Development
Communication Theory
The
theory was propounded in 1972 by Maxwell McCombs and Donald Shaw. They posit
that, the media should be used to promote society's general growth and should
be focused on the society's collective interest rather than the selfish
interests of a few individuals. It was proposed that the government intervene
and promote economic growth. According to Baran and
Davis (2012, p.149), “developmental media theory advocates media support for an
existing political regime and its effort to bring about national economic
development.” The theory emphasized that the media must play supportive role to
government policy and programmmes rather than being
critical of governments, its programmes and
personnel. Several developing countries in South America use this theory (Baran &Davis,2012).
According to Hasan
(2010), development media, also known as development communication, is a set of
communication methods, techniques, and ideas used in international development
to enhance the living conditions and quality of life of those who are poor or
marginalized. The use of communication tools to address development challenges
is characterized by conceptual flexibility and diversity, which reflects the
field's historical history. Information dissemination and education, behaviour modification, social marketing, social
mobilization, media advocacy, communication for social change, and
participatory communication are some of the strategies used in the business.
Development communication is for the good of
society, and it benefits the entire community even though it comes from a
specific group. Ndimele & Innocent (2016),
development communication theory in developing countries, the media is used
entirely for societal development, notably in the fields of agriculture,
health, and social mobilization. They believe media messages can be delivered
in a way that aids poor countries in achieving long-term socioeconomic
improvement. The idea encourages people to participate in the industrialization
process from the ground up; as a result, media material should be
development-driven and focused on people's socioeconomic lives.
Social Learning
Theory
This
theory as propounded by Albert Bandura in 1986 emphasizes the importance of
observing, modeling, and imitating the behaviours,
attitudes and emotional reactions of others. Social learning theory considers
how both environmental and cognitive factors interact to influence human
learning and behaviour. Bandura popularized the term "social
learning theory," which describes how observations in the social world
influence actions and cognitions, also proposed modeling in which an observer
sees a person's behaviour and their consequences, in
addition to classical and operant conditioning. If that individual is rewarded
for their actions, the observer is more inclined to repeat them. If, on the
other hand, the conduct is punished, the observer learns to expect bad results.
The social learning theory is a learning and social behaviours
theory that claims that new behaviours can be learned
by watching and imitating others.
In general, the social learning theory argues
that those who perceive and experience more rewards and fewer costs are more
likely to engage in criminal behaviour. The social
learning theory (SLT) is a popular explanation for criminal behaviour
that claims that crime is learned and more likely to occur when people
associate with criminals, or exposed to delinquent models, expect or receive
more rewards and fewer punishments for crime, and have a larger number of
definitions favourable to crime.
Many delinquency prevention and offender
treatment programmes are based on social learning
theory, which has lately been combined with social structural notions to form a
social structure. The social learning theory has been used to a variety of
phenomena and studies on a variety of topics, including illicit drug use and
prevention, prostitution, theft and so on. These domains reveal a similar
factor: involvement, interest, and benefit, as well as consequences. Now, in
order to be involved in criminal behaviour, the
social learning theory states that such a person has witnessed to some level
the advantage of the practice as well as the gain associated with it, and hence
has a natural desire to participate in it. Also, in a community where cyber crime or cyber criminals are permitted to roam freely
on the streets without facing any penalties or punishment even when caught, the
rest of the community is left with the impression that they may be engaged as
well.
Thus,
socialization, culture, and the media all contribute to the creation of behavioural expectations, and one does not need to
personally experience reinforcement or punishment to be affected. Bandura
(1977) proposed that after completing a task successfully, one feels a sense of
self-efficacy. A cyber criminal's capacity to execute behaviours
necessary to produce specific performance attainments, or self
efficacy, is required to complete a task successfully without being
caught.
Conceptual Review
Development
Communication
Communication
is a very vital aspect of human existence and the strategic use of
communication brings about positive social change and development. According to
Udoakah (1998), communication is the process by which
humans convey their needs, feelings, aspirations, ambitions, and sentiments
using codes, symbols, and language that is recognized by all parties concerned.
Communication is therefore important in the process of development, because it
involves the study of people relating to themselves and to one another in
groups and societies, influencing and being influenced, informing and being
informed, teaching and being taught, loving and being loved, entertaining and
being entertained (Adepoju 2000). Communication,
based on this may be described as an instructive process that leads to a
successful development process. In many aspects, communication is essential to
this quest. It enables planners to consult with people while formulating
development plans, for example, taking into account their needs, attitudes, and
traditional knowledge. Only through communication can project beneficiaries
become the primary actors in the success of development programs (UNDP, 1993).
To achieve any positive social change
communication is required as observed by Pratt & Boyden (1985):
communication between members of the society; communication among development
experts and the target audience with whom they work. Communication is an
essential component of every human activity, involving the interchange of
knowledge, information, feelings, hopes, and fears.
To Braimoh (1988), Effective communication is a necessary
skill for the formation and maintenance of positive social change and
interactions. It entails a regular exchange of ideas and interactions among
individuals in order to solve issues, and efficient communication is regarded
as a necessity for all aspects of group functioning. With all of these
realities, good communication cannot be overlooked if development is to be
achieved. As a consequence, communication is essential for the success of
community development. People are generally resistant to change, but in order
to effect change, you must communicate, address the root causes of the problems,
and present alternative solution. The intentional use of communication to
achieve socially beneficial aims is known as development communication.
In relations to development, communication
refers to an interactive process in which community members and information
providers communicate information, knowledge, and skills vital to development,
either in person or through media such as radio, print, telephones, and
cybernetics. The purpose of proper and strategic communication is to give people the information and skills they need
to make informed decisions and improve their livelihood, because people are at the core of every development
effort, since development does not occur in a vacuum, in this context communication is used for
community mobilization, decision-making, and action, as well as confidence
development for spreading awareness, sharing information, and changing
attitudes, behaviours, and lifestyles (FAO 2006).
Communication for development is the
systematic and planned use of channels of communication such as interpersonal
channels, ICTs, audio-visuals, and mainstream press for development reasons.
Communication will be used to collect and exchange information among all those
involved in the development planning process, with the goal of reaching an
agreement on the problems facing developmental problems and exploring
solutions, mobilize people for development ventures, and trying to assist in
the resolution of problems and misconceptions that may arise during the
development plan. (Thussu 2000).
Communication development's main purpose is
to equip local citizens with the knowledge, ideas, skills, and experience they
need to grow. Every social development project requires communication, as
observed by Pratt & Boyden (1985): Communication between members of a
community and a group; communication between development professionals and the
people they deal with; contact between funders and field workers, and so on.
Cybercrime
Cybercrime
is a large umbrella term that encompasses computer-assisted crime in which
computers and technology are used in a supporting role. At the same time, the
term cyber crime also includes computer focused
crimes that are a direct result of computer technology and would not exist
without it, such as unauthorized computer system trespassing (Furnell 2002; McGuire and Dowling 2013)
Cyber crimes can be classified
into different categories, it includes; cyber-trespass (e.g,
unauthorized system access), cyber-deception/theft (e.g., identity theft,
online fraud, digital piracy), cyber-porn/obscenity (e.g., child sexual
exploitation materials), and cyber-violence (e.g., cyberstalking;
cyber terrorism). (Holt, Bossler,
and Seigfried-Spellar 2018).
It is
nearly impossible to estimate the amount of cyber crime
that occurs in most nations across the world because of a lack of standardized
legal definitions for these offenses and few valid, reliable official
statistics (Holt and Bossler 2016). Evidence
demonstrates, however, that cyber crime rates are
increasing as the rates for many forms of traditional street crimes continue to
decrease (Tcherni 2016).
The amount of research on cyber
crime has grown exponentially over the last few decades, some focused on
exploring how the nature of cyber crime and
cyberspace differed from traditional crime and terrestrial space (Grabosky 2001).
A significant challenge for cyber crime scholars, both historically and currently, is
the lack of official statistics on most forms of cyber crime.
In the United States, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Uniform Crime
Report’s Summary Reporting System, the most commonly used source for crime
data, provides no information on cyber crime or
whether any form of technology was involved in the commission of a crime. The
National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), which the U.S. is fully
moving to in 2021, also does not provide a specific cyber
crime category, but does allow agencies to indicate whether a computer
was involved in the commission of a crime. Since necessity is the mother of
invention, scholars studying cyber crime were
required to collect primary data in innovative ways, such as by analyzing forum
discussions, bulletin boards, and blogs, deploying honeypots, and developing
field experiments (Holt and Bossler 2016 ).
How Cyber criminals Operate.
Kate
Brush (2021) describes extensively how criminals operate as well as explaining
in details the types of cyber crime that can be found
in the modern era. Kate explains that cyber criminals range from a single user
who engages in cyber bullying to state sponsored actors such as China's
intelligence agencies. Cybercrime can start everywhere there is digital data,
opportunity, or motivation. Cybercrime does not happen in a vacuum; it is, in
many ways, a distributed phenomenon. That is, hackers frequently enlist the
help of third parties to accomplish their schemes. Today, fraudsters utilize
crypto currency brokers to trade illegal drugs and keep virtual money in escrow
for state threat actors, who rely on technology to steal intellectual property.
The world of cyber crime is currently in flux, as
cyber criminals seek novel ways to carry out their activities and achieve their
objectives while evading detection and imprisonment on a daily basis.
Types of Cybercrime
Kate
brush (2021) enumerated the numerous varieties of cyber
crime, and posited that majority of cyber crimes
are carried out with the intention of gaining financial advantage for the
perpetrators, though the methods through which cyber criminals seek payment can
vary. The following are examples of certain types of cyber
crime:
Cyber extortion: An attack or threat of an
attack that is followed by a demand for money to cease the attack. The ransomware assault is one type of cyber extortion. The
attacker gains access to an organization's networks and encrypts its documents
and files (or anything else of value) until a ransom is paid. This is usually
in the form of crypto money, such as bitcoin.
Crypto jacking: An exploit that employs
scripts to mine crypto currency without the user's permission within browsers. crypto currency mining software may be loaded into the
victim's machine as part of a crypto jacking attack. However, if the user's
browser has a tab or window open on the rogue site, many assaults rely on
JavaScript code that performs in-browser mining. There is no need to install
malware because the in-browser mining code is executed when the affected page
is loaded.
·
Identity
theft: An attack in which a person gains access to a computer in order to
obtain personal information about a user, which they then use to steal that
person's identity or gain access to their valuable accounts, such as banking
and credit cards. On dark net markets, cyber criminals buy and sell identity
information, including financial accounts and other types of accounts such as
video streaming services, web mail, video and audio streaming, online auctions,
and more. Identity thieves frequently target personal health information as
well.
·
Credit
card fraud: An attack in which hackers gain access to a retailer's networks in
order to steal their customers' credit card and/or banking information. On dark
net markets, stolen payment cards can be bought and sold in bulk, with hacking
groups profiting from selling to lower-level cyber criminals who earn from
credit card fraud against individual accounts.
·
Cyber espionage: A cyber
crime in which a cyber criminal hacks into a
government's or other organization's systems or networks in order to gain
access to confidential information. Profit or ideology may be the driving force
behind an attack. Cyber espionage activities can include any type of cyber attack to gather, modify, or destroy data, as well as
the use of network connected devices, such as webcams or closed-circuit
television (CCTV) cameras, to spy on a targeted individual or group and
monitoring communications, such as emails, text messages, and instant messages.
·
Software
piracy: An attack involving the unauthorized copying, dissemination, and usage
of software programmes for commercial or personal
gain. This sort of cyber crime is frequently related
with trademark infringements, copyright infringements, and patent
infringements.
·
Exit
scam: Not surprisingly, the dark web has spawned a digital counterpart of an
old swindle known as the exit scam. Dark web administrators shift virtual
currency kept in marketplace escrow accounts to their own accounts in today's
form, thus stealing from other criminals.
·
Ransomware: ransomware
is the fastest growing cyber crime, ransomware victims include big
companies, small and medium enterprises and individual consumers. Ransomware began years ago with floppy disks sent through
the mail, inviting victims to take a survey assessing their risk of contracting
AIDS. Ransomware has gone from artisanal exploit to
mass-market. Lewis James (2018).
Development
Communication as a Tool for the Eradication of Cybercrime
Communication
for development is the systematic and planned use of communication channels for
development purposes, such as interpersonal channels, ICTs, audio-visuals, and
the mainstream media. According to Ochonogor (2006),
a successful multimedia strategy would require project managers to take
advantage of the vast capacity available through numerous communication
channels such as radio, television, newspapers, and magazines. Posters and
traditional media channels, as well as social media platforms like Facebook,
Twitter, Instagram, and Whatsapp
when used simultaneously, have the potential to be extraordinarily effective in
achieving the stated goal of informing and enlightening members of the Yenagoa metropolis of the consequences of this social vice.
Cybercrime is a vice that should be
eradicated because it poses a significant threat to the socio-economic
well-being of the people of Yenagoa, and development
communication can be used strategically to eradicate cyber
crime. To effectively tackle this menace, development communication
would need to utilize a variety of media that is multimedia, which combines old and current communication channels, such as radio,
television, newspaper, town hall meetings, magazine, cinema, as well as the
internet. This means there is a need to create a functional development
communication strategy, and all kinds of media channels should be leveraged on
effectively in order to reach out to the population of Yenagoa,
Bayelsa state, particularly young adults. Cyber crime is a social ill that is slowly but steadily
ravaging Nigerian youngsters across the country. The rapid transition to an
electronic society in which everything is done electronically, such as
electronic payment, electronic voting, electronic banking, electronic
registration, and so on, has left electronic transactions vulnerable to cyber attacks, resulting in negative security consequences.
The internet is accessible and used by people from many works of life; it could
be for work, education, pleasure, and so on.
Ochonogor (2006) throws light
on the use of the entertainment-education approach to efficiently pass across
development messages, since people's attention is easily captivated when
significant concerns are portrayed as entertainment rather than news reports.
This means that in the Yenagoa metropolitan, should
inculcate appealing multi-media techniques such as anti-cybercrime campaigns
using drama, songs, and jingles, as well as captivating mobile enlightenment
campaigns, to educate youths on the need to desist from cyber
crime and other societal vices. This is pertinent no note, because when
the media is utilized correctly in this millennial era, cyber
crime activities will be minimized causing a safer society and
development to thrive.
METHODOLOGY
The
survey research design was adopted for this study, the
questionnaire was used as the instrument of data collection. This study was
conducted in Yenagoa metropolis, Bayelsa
state. According to the National Population Commission (NPC, 2006) the Yenagoa metropolis has a population of 352,285. Using the
Taro Yamane formula this study has a sample size of 400,
therefore 400 copies of the questionnaire were administered to residents of Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. The
convenient sampling technique was used for this study.
Measuring
Instrument
The
four points likert scale was
used to analyse data drawn from items in the
questionnaire. Mean criterion was used to determine acceptability or rejection
of and item, the mean criterion for this study is 2.5 calculated thus: SA(Strongly agreed) = 4points, A(Agreed) = 3points,
D(Disagreed) = 2points, SD(Strongly disagree) = 1point.
4+3+2+1
= 2.5
4
Therefore
2.5 will serve as the mean criterion for this study.
Presentation,
Discussion and Analysis of Findings
This
study used a survey method, collecting its data through the questionnaire. A
total of 400 copies of questionnaire were administered to the respondents, and
400 copies of the questionnaire were retrieved and used for the study.
Table
four shows that generally apart from traditional forms of media such as radio,
television and news papers, not enough is being done
in terms of employing development communication channels such as town hall
meetings and town criers in eradicating cyber crimes
among youths in Yenegoa. Town criers and town hall
meetings did not get enough acceptability by the respondents, in the sense that
they have being properly employed in eradicating cyber crime
as they believe that information about cyber crimes
are not captured in discussions held in town hall meetings.
For
communication to be effective, it has to pass through
the right channel, traditional means of communication have not helped a lot in
fighting against cyber crime in society as messages
about cyber crime hardly pass through those medium
such as town hall meetings and town criers. Television, radio, and newspaper
media have done a lot in helping in the war against cyber crime, however more is
needed to be done if more youths should be brought out of the shackles of cyber crime engagement.
CONCLUSION
Cybercrime
is a threat that should be stopped and reduced to the barest minimum in the
city of Yenagoa, through the variety of development
communication strategies discussed in this study. The findings show that young
adults commit bulk of the cyber crimes, and that the
development communication strategies can be used to combat cyber
crime in Yenegoa if properly employed.
The study concluded that youths of Yenegoa agree that cyber crime is
bad, however there is a certain level of cyber crime
activities prevalent in the city, based on certain motivating factors like the
need to feel among, financial freedom among others. Communicating through town
criers and town hall meetings have not been effective in fighting against cyber crimes in Yenegoa, however
there has been some level of progress made with traditional media.
Although various solutions have been proposed
to prevent future incidences of this crime, the government and individuals can
still do a lot to lessen it. It is proposed that our government place a higher
priority on the welfare and well-being of its citizens in order to reduce the
burden on individuals by providing good-paying jobs and other basic
necessities. This will have a big positive impact on the quality of life. Cyber crime is expected to reduce and eventually be
eradicated if development communication is effectively utilized.
Recommendations
The
following recommendations are made based on the findings:
1.
The government should use the media to aggressively raise public awareness on cyber crime, and personal cyber space security should be incorporated
into the primary, secondary, and university education curricula.
2. Individuals must
follow simple personal safety regulations such as avoiding exposing personal
data or banking information to strangers, such as credit card pins, bank account numbers, e-mail codes, and using antivirus
software to protect their systems from infection,
among other things.
3. Both the government and the private sector
should provide jobs for young graduates, and where jobs are scarce, vocational
skills and entrepreneurial programmes should be established
to keep the youth fully engaged.
4. Development communication strategies should
be employed to reach the youths and influence their perception on cyber crime.
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