Interdisciplinary project launched by the Cyber-Resilient Society unit
The Agentur für Innovation in der Cybersicherheit GmbH (Cyberagentur) is initiating the research project “Damage caused by cybercrime”. The aim of the research project is to develop a model for the holistic recording of the material and immaterial effects of cybercrime in order to better allocate resources in the future and initiate new prevention approaches. The award procedure was published on June 26, 2024.
The digital transformation of our world brings with it many benefits as well as an increase in the risks and potential impact that cybercrime has on society. The complex nature of the damage, from financial losses to psychological effects, requires an innovative approach to comprehensively record and assess all the effects of cybercrime. “We currently lack the data basis to holistically record the material and immaterial damage caused by cybercrime in the short, medium and long term. Anything that we can’t assess precisely carries the risk of over- or underestimation and therefore the risk of not deploying resources in the right place,” explains project manager Dr. Nicole Selzer, Head of the Cyber Resilient Society Unit at the Cyber Agency.
With the research project “Damage caused by cybercrime” (SCK), the cyber agency now wants to tackle this problem and thus take an important step towards a cyber-resilient society. If the effects are recorded holistically, potential damage that is currently underestimated and requires other prevention, detection and response measures can become visible.
The core objective of the project is to develop an innovative model that combines metrics and methodologies to capture both material and immaterial damage caused by cybercrime. This damage is to be recorded systematically, reproducibly and verifiably in the short, medium and long term, including the cascading effects, for the various phenomena of cybercrime. This should also create a basis for proactively responding to future threats.
Diverse approaches sought for damage assessment
The results of this project will support a wide range of applications, from the precise assessment of Germany’s cybersecurity level to the strategic orientation of cybersecurity measures.
A particular focus is on the detailed analysis of cybercrime, both in the narrower and broader sense. It examines which crimes fall under this area and how they can be effectively recorded. The relevance of existing crime statistics will also be assessed.
The project aims to produce a variety of outputs, including a comprehensive model, innovative metrics and methodologies, coded datasets, databases, demonstrators and scientific publications. These tools and findings will form the basis for further research and make a valuable contribution to the fight against cybercrime.
By answering key research questions, the research project “Damage caused by cybercrime” will not only close existing gaps in the recording and assessment of cybercrime, but also initiate preventive measures and strategies for a resilient society. It marks an important step towards a comprehensive national and international cyber security strategy.
The invitation to tender was published in the Supplement to the Official Journal of the European Union with the contract notice number TED 383792-2024: https://www.evergabe-online.de/tenderdetails.html?2&id=623480. The end of the competition is 06.08.2024
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