Willison, Robert

robert.willison@northumbria.ac.uk

Opportunities for Computer Abuse: assessing a crime-specific approach in the case of Barings Bank

(2002)

Within the field of IS security, little has been written on the subject of criminal opportunity. More precisely, little has been written on what exactly constitutes an opportunity, and the relationship between employees who might act as potential offenders and the IS context in which such opportunities may be afforded.

The purpose of this study is to assess the feasibility of a crime-specific model known as an 'opportunity structure', which, as the name suggests, maps out those elements which are thought to form an opportunity. Drawing on a number of criminological theories, the model considers the role of potential offenders in a work place setting by viewing them as rational decision-makers who assess their environment, and possible opportunities, in cost-benefit terms. Furthermore, the model takes a crime-specific approach as each type of crime is made up of unique mix of elements.

Ignoring the idiosyncratic nature of specific crimes severely reduces an understanding of each type of crime, and further hinders effective prevention programmes. An ethnographic account of the collapse of a financial institution will be used to assess the feasibility of the model.

Read the full thesis: Opportunities for Computer Abuse: assessing a crime-specific approach in the case of Barings Bank (PDF)

Supervisor: Professor James Backhouse, PhD

Robert Willison is currently Principal Lecturer in Business Analysis, Systems and Information Management at Northumbria University

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