David S. Wall – författare

First published in 1998, this book analytically examines the social and professional origins of one of the most powerful groups in society, the Chief Constables of the police forces of England and Wales. By examining the selection policies of police authorities during the past century and a half, it provides an explanation of the contrast that is found between the picture of yesterday’s Chief Constable as an ex-military, tweed suit wearing, friend of the local aristocracy and the technocratic managerial image of Chief Constables today.

Drawing upon analysis of the careers of fall Chief Constables known to have held office between 1835 and 1995, and supplemented by contemporary and recent literature, this book illustrates the subtle interaction that was found between politics and policing at both local and national levels. At the centre of these findings is the observation that whilst they were once part of their respective local power elites, Chief Constables are now an elite group in their own right with direct links with central government.

First published in 1998, this book analytically examines the social and professional origins of one of the most powerful groups in society, the Chief Constables of the police forces of England and Wales. By examining the selection policies of police authorities during the past century and a half, it provides an explanation of the contrast that is found between the picture of yesterday’s Chief Constable as an ex-military, tweed suit wearing, friend of the local aristocracy and the technocratic managerial image of Chief Constables today.

Drawing upon analysis of the careers of fall Chief Constables known to have held office between 1835 and 1995, and supplemented by contemporary and recent literature, this book illustrates the subtle interaction that was found between politics and policing at both local and national levels. At the centre of these findings is the observation that whilst they were once part of their respective local power elites, Chief Constables are now an elite group in their own right with direct links with central government.

Cybercrime has recently experienced an ascending position in national security agendas world-wide. It has become part of the National Security Strategies of a growing number of countries, becoming a Tier One threat, above organised crime and fraud generally. Furthermore, new techno-social developments in social network media suggest that cyber-threats will continue to increase. This collection addresses the recent ''inertia'' in both critical thinking and the empirical study of cybercrime and policing by adding to the literature seven interdisciplinary and critical chapters on various issues relating to the new generation of cybercrimes currently being experienced. The chapters illustrate that cybercrimes are changing in two significant ways that are asymmetrical. On the one hand cybercrime is becoming increasingly professionalised, resulting in ’specialists’ that perform complex and sophisticated attacks on computer systems and human users. On the other, the ‘hyper-connectivity’ brought about by the exponential growth in social media users has opened up opportunities to ‘non-specialist’ citizens to organise and communicate in ways that facilitate crimes on and offline. While largely distinct, these developments pose equally contrasting challenges for policing which this book addresses.

This book was originally published as a special issue of Policing and Society.

Cybercrime has recently experienced an ascending position in national security agendas world-wide. It has become part of the National Security Strategies of a growing number of countries, becoming a Tier One threat, above organised crime and fraud generally. Furthermore, new techno-social developments in social network media suggest that cyber-threats will continue to increase. This collection addresses the recent ''inertia'' in both critical thinking and the empirical study of cybercrime and policing by adding to the literature seven interdisciplinary and critical chapters on various issues relating to the new generation of cybercrimes currently being experienced. The chapters illustrate that cybercrimes are changing in two significant ways that are asymmetrical. On the one hand cybercrime is becoming increasingly professionalised, resulting in ’specialists’ that perform complex and sophisticated attacks on computer systems and human users. On the other, the ‘hyper-connectivity’ brought about by the exponential growth in social media users has opened up opportunities to ‘non-specialist’ citizens to organise and communicate in ways that facilitate crimes on and offline. While largely distinct, these developments pose equally contrasting challenges for policing which this book addresses.

This book was originally published as a special issue of Policing and Society.

How has the digital revolution transformed criminal opportunities and behaviour? What is different about cybercrime compared with traditional criminal activity? What impact might cybercrime have on public security?

In this updated edition of his authoritative and field-defining text, cybercrime expert David Wall carefully examines these and other important issues. Incorporating analysis of the latest technological advances and their criminological implications, he disentangles what is really known about cybercrime today. An ecosystem of specialists has emerged to facilitate cybercrime, reducing individual offenders’ level of risk and increasing the scale of crimes involved. This is a world where digital and networked technologies have effectively democratized crime by enabling almost anybody to carry out crimes that were previously the preserve of either traditional organized crime groups or a privileged coterie of powerful people. Against this background, the author scrutinizes the regulatory challenges that cybercrime poses for the criminal (and civil) justice processes, at both the national and the international levels.

This book offers the most intellectually robust account of cybercrime currently available. It is suitable for use on courses across the social sciences, and in computer science, and will appeal to advanced undergraduate and graduate students.