The DNA of Organised Crime is Changing, Europol Warns

Europol’s EU Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment (EU- SOCTA) 20251, published in March, reveals how the very DNA of crime is shifting – adapting to a world shaped by global instability, digitalisation and emerging technologies, and no longer bound by traditional structures.

Based on intelligence from EU member states and international law enforcement partners, EU-SOCTA analyses the threats posed by serious and organised crime to the bloc’s internal security. It identifies several defining characteristics of such crime, one of which is that nearly all forms of organised crime have a digital footprint, whether as a tool, target or facilitator.

From cyber fraud and ransomware to drug trafficking and money laundering, the internet has become the primary theatre for organised crime. Criminal networks increasingly exploit digital infrastructure to conceal their activities from law enforcement, while data emerges as the new currency of power – stolen, traded, and exploited by criminal actors.