Bachelor of Security Science Cybercrime Problem in USA Portfolio

Today’s task is to find a case study that interests you. However, you will not use a case study that someone else published. You will identify a problem on your own to work on. The problem must be a real one. You can discuss Saudi Arabia or any other country that you like. You cannot work on the same problem as another student.

Click on the chevron (v) to enlarge. Reference: Bynum, T. (2006). Using Analysis for Problem Solving: A Guidebook for Law Enforcement. https://nccpsafety.org/assets/files/library/Using_Analysis_for_Problem-Solving.pdf

One of the hardest parts of finding a problem is finding data. Detailed data related to crime in Saudi Arabia is as scarce as hen’s teeth. You might have more success looking to the US, where police departments often make some crime data available to the public.

Some places that offer open data include:

• City of Seattle
• Pittsburgh Crime data and also here.
• Albuqureque
• New York City Police Department
• New Orleans Police Department
• Police Data Initiative – This site has an interactive map to find cities with open data sources.
• Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Crime Data Explorer
• Other FBI Publications
• US Bureau of Justice Statistics
• US Homeland Security Digital Library

To get a look at a hot spot, use Google Maps to get a street-level view, as we did in the Albuquerque car theft case study. This might be especially useful if you are looking at CPTED issues.

You should choose a problem that interests you and then submit it to your instructor for approval by email. Once your topic is approved, you can decide on your theoretical framework for your investigation.

Prompt: Compose an original Problem-Solving Report about a real-life crime problem somewhere in Saudi Arabia or in the US. Use the report format attached to this assignment.

Process

Step 1: Choose a problem

1. Scan the web sites above or find your own sources of data.
2. Select a problem that interests you. It could be small (beat-level) or large (trends).
3. Select an approach that you will use to analyze the problem.