Crime, and the fear of crime, is extremely important in an individual’s perceived quality of life. As anti-social behaviour and violent crime figures continue to rise, the public and the media have become increasingly concerned by issues such as binge drinking and so-called ‘yob culture.’ As well as low level crime, there has been a distinct increase in organised cyber-crime.

It is estimated that crime costs UK businesses £19bn per year and each crime costs nearly £2,600. These costs represent significant inefficiencies in the economy and their prevention must be made a priority.

Although crime in the North East remains around the national average, the fear of crimes such as burglary, car crime and violent crime are below the national average, demonstrating that the region’s population feels safe in their environment. Recorded crime in each of these areas dropped in 2006-2007. In contrast the rates and the perceived risk associated with anti-social behaviour crimes (vandalism, drug use, drug dealing etc.) are higher than the national levels. Statistics also show that whilst North East residents have above average confidence in their local police (relative to the national average) their confidence is below average in the criminal justice system bringing criminals to justice.

The rise of internet and related technologies has created new security threats which individuals and organisations must address. A 2006 survey showed that 44% of UK businesses reported suffering at least one malicious security breach perpetrated through ‘hacking.’ On average each incident costs around £33,000, but a number of those surveyed stated that the damage had been in excess of £500,000. In 2003 the ILOVEU virus infected over 45 million computers worldwide and caused £7bn worth of damage, the virus was created by a teenager who was seeking to generate business for his mother’s PC repair shop.

As well as organised gangs perpetrating attacks for the purposes of profit, there is also the equally pressing issue of recreational or ethical hackers who pit their wits against the security systems of large multinationals or central governments.

The UK government and the national police force has begun to recognise the threat posed by these individuals and groups and is now putting significant resources into training officers in using forensic tools required to catch some of the main protagonists. Despite this, crimes such as identify theft still appear to be low on the list of priorities and are now more likely to be dealt with by private sector companies such as banks, rather than the police.

The private sector is responding to the threat of cyber crime with ever more sophisticated methods of security, including biometrics and chip & pin, as consumers demand reassurance that their resources are protected. 

Fact File

• There has been a fall of 1% in crime committed in 2005/2006.
• While overall crime has decreased, violent crime has increased sharply to the tune of 49% in the period 2005/2006.
•  “Soft level” crime such as vandalism has seen an 11% rise and in vehicle damage a 2% rise.
• The cost of crime is valued at £19bn per year for businesses and £2.2bn for retail.
• The cost of processing a crime is estimated at £878, the court costs at £704 and the jail sentence at £1,000. This is a total cost of almost £2,600 per crime.
• Mobile phones now feature in 28% of all robberies, compared to just 8% three years ago. Mobile phone theft is increasing at a greater rate than other incidents and the suspects and victims involved are younger than those involved in other types of theft.