Digital property crimes, i.e., fraud, fake advertisements, scams, etc., have been on the rise in recent years. Especially during the Christmas season, when you're looking for a last-minute gift for your loved ones, you might fall for a supposed bargain. Or if you are particularly longing for someone by your side right now, you are especially vulnerable to romance scams.
According to federal crime statistics, online crime is increasing significantly in Switzerland. In 2024, over 59,000 crimes were reported, more than twice as many as in 2020. The vast majority of these relate to internet fraud. Phishing attacks, misuse of online payment options, and identity fraud have grown particularly strongly. One reason for this increase is that such cases have been recorded more accurately since September 2023. At the same time, it can be assumed that the number of unreported crimes is high.
Fraud schemes are becoming increasingly sophisticated, partly due to new technological possibilities. For example, AI can now imitate the voice of one's own daughter with alarmingly few data points. This fake voice is then used to feign an emergency in which the “daughter” urgently needs money. AI can now also create deepfakes, i.e., deceptively real videos of a person who never existed. And so Karin Keller-Sutter suddenly finds herself advertising an investment forum. Others exploit the housing shortage and place fake apartment ads. Still others create fake profiles on dating apps and pretend to be in a romantic relationship for months to gain the trust of their victims.
It is now known that these are not just individual perpetrators, but organized crime. Today, organized international networks are behind many current online fraud cases. The perpetrators work across different countries, with professional call centers, technical tools, and fake identities. Not only can you buy a complete set of photos of a person on Telegram to misuse their identity, you can also provide addresses in Paris and other major cities where love scammers can send their gifts to maintain the image of the supposed French artist.
Not all those involved are part of these structures voluntarily: increasingly, people themselves are being exploited or pressured into committing fraud for these criminal groups. This means that digital crime is also becoming a problem of human trafficking and forced labor.
There are more and more fraud offenses that do not only work through technical deception, such as phishing emails. But what all the examples mentioned above have in common is that they also manipulate the feelings of the victims. This is because online fraud usually does not only work through technical tricks. Almost always, there is a human factor involved: the hope of finding true love, the long-lost granddaughter, or the fear that something has been unjustifiably debited from the account.
This shows that the prevention of digital property crimes is not only about technical skills, but also about emotional resilience in stressful situations.
To date, there are only a few offerings that take a holistic view of the danger posed by such scams. That is why our workshops discuss not only technical tricks but also emotional pressure tactics using real-life examples. In the exercises, participants learn to recognize warning signs early on and to pause for a moment before acting when they feel uncertain. Through role-playing and guided reflection, they strengthen their ability to keep a cool head in stressful situations and to recognize manipulative messages more clearly.
Thanks to the “Rein ins Netz” funding from Migros Kulturprozent, we are able to further develop this format and are now looking for implementation partners who work directly with the target group. We are looking for organizations that work with people affected by poverty or at risk of poverty and would like to offer such a workshop together with us – please contact jeannie.schneider@dezentrum.ch if you are interested in collaborating with us.