Narrative Review: The Role of the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Rise of Cybercrime Worldwide

Abstract

The high incidence of cybercrime during the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia underscores the need for a study on the role of the COVID-19 pandemic in the global increase of cybercrime. This research aims to understand the role of the COVID-19 pandemic in the rise of cybercrime worldwide. The study uses a narrative review method, involving the search for articles with similar or related topics to gather relevant data. The keywords used were: cybercrime, COVID-19, World. Articles were sourced from trusted websites, including Google.com, Google Scholar, and Semantic Scholar, with a publication date range from 2019 to 2024. The results indicate that COVID-19 had a positive impact on communication services, PC delivery, social media usage, online shopping, and accelerated the use of cash alternatives. However, it also had negative effects, such as extreme global poverty, financial difficulties, loss of income, increased depression among American teenagers living with their parents, and international cybercrime targeting vaccine research and development organizations.