The Face of Cyber Crime Has Changed

The traditional image of a shadowy hacker lurking in the dark recesses of the internet is no longer the only reality. Today's cyber crime landscape is dominated by smart, curious teenagers who are often still in school and forming their identity.

Recent cases have exposed this uncomfortable truth. Multi-million pound attacks on well-known UK companies Co-op, M&S, and Harrods have been traced to individuals aged 17, 19, and 20. Scattered Spider is the most recent, most famous case, but it isn't an isolated event – the average age of someone arrested for cyber crime is 19, compared to 34 for other crimes.

Europol found that 69% of European teens have committed a cyber crime or misdemeanor. These are middle-of-the-curve kids, not hardened hackers, emboldened by cash, with years of professional experience. They are symptoms of a much broader failure to engage with the emerging reality of a generation that learns, explores and socialises online, and increasingly pushes boundaries there too.

We need to stop treating teenage cyber crime as an isolated behavioral issue. What we're seeing is a societal and educational blind spot, where the true failure is a lack of guidance, development, and opportunity. These teenagers aren't joining gangs on street corners, which does come with a code of ethics in its own way.

They're testing code and pushing systems because they're curious, driven, and have nowhere else to aim that energy. This natural inclination, when nurtured, is the foundation of intelligence and underpins all innovation. As Steve Jobs said, "Much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on."

The System Fails to Spot Their Potential Early On

In many cases, they don't fully understand the legal consequences. They're experimenting, often for recognition in the Discord servers that egg them on, sometimes for the challenge itself.

The system fails to spot their potential early on and only responds once they cross a line. That's not a security strategy, it's a failure of imagination from all involved. Organised crime groups have already recognised this and are actively recruiting. Networks like The Com or 764 on Discord and Telegram have groomed children in private chat groups, coercing them into extortion, doxing, self-harm material, and laundering stolen data.

Young recruits often remain unaware of the full magnitude of their crimes until it's far too late. Every organisation that relies on digital systems – which is to say, obviously, is nearly all of them – is now facing a growing threat landscape and a critical shortage of talent to defend against it.

Creating a Generation of Ethical Hackers

Globally, there are nearly five million unfilled cyber security roles. At the same time, governments, businesses, and schools continue to treat cyber security as a niche subject rather than a foundational skill set.

It's taken quite literally decades to have an appropriate amount of technology literacy at schools as preparation for a world where careers are increasingly moving solely online. Yet, there is an entire generation of natural born hackers. If we took half the effort we spend on reacting to youth cyber crime and redirected it toward early education, real-world challenges, and career pathways in cyber, we could start converting those vulnerabilities into national assets.

The UK government has taken a step towards this with the TechFirst programme, investing £187m over four years to impact a million British kids in cyber, AI, and engineering. What do we need to do to create change? We need to meet kids where they are, on gaming platforms, watching content, and on social media, to spark passion for cyber.

Meet Us at The Hacking Games

We're part of a movement that's dedicated to inspiring, evaluating, and placing talent in the hands of young people. Our AI platform, HAPTAI, does exactly that. It looks at gaming behaviours and performances, modding, psychographics, and tests aptitudes for cyber skills.

Take Co-op, for example. Their recent partnership with us will combine their reach into every post code area of the UK, community expertise, 38 Co-op Academy schools, 20,000 students, and their 6.5 million member base with our extensive knowledge and expertise in cyber crime.

Join the Conversation

We need to create a generation of ethical hackers to make the world safer. If you're passionate about creating positive change, let's work together. Read more on Hackers and Cybercrime Prevention Co-op chief 'incredibly sorry' for theft of 6.5m members' data Four arrested in M&S cyber attack investigation British hacker IntelBroker faces years in a US prison cell Teenage Lapsus$ ringleader was responsible for crime spree, UK court rules