Examining the Effect of Victimization Experience on Fear of Cybercrime: University Students' Experience of Credit/Debit Card Fraud

Fear of crime research tends to focus disproportionately on physical or place-based crimes while cybercrimes, which have been increasing over the past two decades, are relatively excluded. Drawing on Beck’s theory of a risk society, this paper examines the impact of previous victimization experiences on fear of future encounters with cybercrime. A total of 462 students at the University of Saskatchewan participated in an online survey that collected demographic information and asked if they had ever felt fearful about being the victim of credit/debit card fraud. Binary logistic regression was used to predict fear of cybercrime victimization. Prior experience of victimization was positively associated with students’ fear of becoming victims of credit/debit card fraud. Socio-demographic factors and knowledge of cybercrime were not significant predictors of students’ fear of becoming victims of credit/debit card fraud. This study highlights the need to reconsider risks and examine reflexivity further as it relates to how people modify their behaviors when faced with the threat of cybercriminal victimization. This study also highlights the need for fear of crime research, and victimology in general, to consider the unique differences between the different crime forms – conventional and cyber-based crimes