Summary
(Published September 18, 2024) There has been little analysis on the individuals sentenced for a federal offense who used cyber technology for illegal purposes. In developing this report, the Commission collected information on individuals sentenced for offenses using cryptocurrency, the dark web, and hacking for fiscal years 2014 through 2021.
This report provides demographic and sentencing information for those individuals who used at least one of three types of cyber technology during their offenses—hacking, cryptocurrency, and the dark web—along with the types of offenses committed using these technologies. The Commission analyzed this data to draw comparisons with all other federally sentenced individuals between fiscal years 2014 and 2021 who did not use these technologies.
Key Findings
Between 2014 and 2021, 2,590 sentenced individuals used at least one of three types of cyber technology—hacking, cryptocurrency, and the dark web—in connection with a federal offense, and the number increased substantially during the time studied from 2014 to 2021. However, this number represented less than one percent of the total federal caseload.
Individuals who used cyber technology in their offense were more likely to be White, male, younger, and have completed at least some college than other sentenced individuals.
- Over two-thirds (68.6%) of individuals who used cyber technology in their offense were White, compared to 21.5 percent of other sentenced individuals.
- While 94.0 percent of those who used cyber technology were male, 86.8 percent of other sentenced individuals were male.
- Almost a quarter (22.4%) of individuals who used cyber technology had a college degree, compared to 5.8 percent of other sentenced individuals.
Individuals who used hacking, cryptocurrency, or the dark web in their offense had less criminal history than individuals who did not use cyber technology in the commission of a federal crime. Less than half of other sentenced individuals were in Criminal History Category (CHC) I, the lowest category.
The most common offenses committed by individuals who used cyber technology in their offense were child pornography (28.9%), fraud (27.5%), drug trafficking (20.6%), and money laundering (8.9%).
