The risk of computer crime has become a global issue affecting almost all countries. Salifu (2008) argues
that the Internet is a "double-edged sword" providing many opportunities for individuals and organizations
to develop and prosper, but at the same time has brought with it new opportunities to commit crime. For
example, Nigeria-related financial crime is extensive and 122 out of 138 countries at an Interpol meeting
complained about Nigerian involvement in financial fraud in their countries. The most notorious type
attempted daily on office workers all over the world, is the so-called advance fee fraud. The sender will
seek to involve the recipient in a scheme to earn millions of dollars if the recipient pays an advance fee
(Ampratwum, 2009).
Computer crime is an overwhelming problem worldwide. It has brought an array of new crime activities
and actors and, consequently, a series of new challenges in the fight against this new threat (Picard, 2009).
Policing computer crime is a knowledge-intensive challenge indeed because of the innovative aspect of
many kinds of computer crime.
Cyberspace presents a challenging new frontier for criminology, police science, law enforcement and
policing. Virtual reality and computer-mediated communications challenge the traditional discourse of
criminology and police work, introducing new forms of deviance, crime, and social control. Since the
1990s, academics and practitioners have observed how cyberspace has emerged as a new field of criminal
activity. Cyberspace is changing the nature and scope of offending and victimization. A new discipline
named cyber criminology is emerging. Jaishankar (2007) defines cyber criminology as the study of
causation of crimes that occur in the cyberspace and its impact in the physical space.