Routine Online Activity and Internet Fraud Targeting: Extending the Generality of Routine Activity Theory

TLDR

Routine activity theory predicts that changes in opportunity structures, such as technology, increase the convergence of motivated offenders and suitable targets, and the Internet has expanded opportunities for cyber‑fraudsters to target online consumers. The study uses routine activity theory and consumer behavior research to examine how personal characteristics and online routines raise individuals’ exposure to motivated offenders. A representative survey of 922 Florida adults and regression analyses show that sociodemographic characteristics shape routine online activity, including time spent online and online purchases. The results reveal that routine online activity fully mediates the relationship between sociodemographic traits and the likelihood of being targeted for fraud, supporting the routine activity perspective and guiding situational crime prevention in consumer contexts.

Abstract

Routine activity theory predicts that changes in legitimate opportunity structures (e.g., technology) can increase the convergence of motivated offenders and suitable targets in the absence of capable guardianship. The Internet has fundamentally changed consumer practices and has simultaneously expanded opportunities for cyber-fraudsters to target online consumers. The authors draw on routine activity theory and consumer behavior research to understand how personal characteristics and online routines increase people’s exposure to motivated offenders. Using a representative sample of 922 adults from a statewide survey in Florida, the results of the regression models are consistent with prior research in that sociodemographic characteristics shape routine online activity (e.g., spending time online and making online purchases). Furthermore, indicators of routine online activity fully mediate the effect of sociodemographic characteristics on the likelihood of being targeted for fraud online. These findings support the routine activity perspective and provide a theoretically informed direction for situational crime prevention in a largely unexplored consumer context.