Digital Cross-Border Workers. Networks and Strategies for Defrauding the Elderly

Giacomo Di Gennaro; Marco Minicucci

doi:10.6093/978-88-6887-409-4

Digital Cross-Border Workers. Networks and Strategies for Defrauding the Elderly

Authors

Giacomo Di Gennaro

University of Naples Federico II

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1529-3454

Marco Minicucci

DOI: https://doi.org/10.6093/978-88-6887-409-4

Keywords:

Scams, Elderly people, Organized crime, Statistical models, georeferencing of crimes

Synopsis

Publisher: FedOA - Federico II University Press

Series: Studies and Researches in Criminal, Legal and Social Sciences

Pages: 187

Language: Italian

Abstract: In recent years, there have been no specific studies or research on the phenomenon of scams targeting the elderly. The authors' present work is a example of systematic integration between theory and investigation, going beyond the simple description of updated data. Furthermore, it offers a profile of the offender and the victim, producing an interpretative framework of the reasons why some provinces, compared to others, are more attractive to cynical exploiters of the more vulnerable conditions of the elderly population. The research, in presenting the trend of this crime over the last five years, identifies, among the various factors, the influence that institutional performance has on increasing or decreasing the level of territorial security, highlighting – compared to a more general common sense – that the simple provision of money by the victims does not in itself constitute the exclusive reason that drives new digital travelers to one location rather than another. Some preventive and counter-crime policy suggestions, leveraging the best practices the force has experimented with in recent years, highlight what still needs to be done to improve results, considering that – as with any crime – a multidisciplinary and integrated approach and action always offers better solutions than the isolated actions of each social actor.

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Author Biographies

Giacomo Di Gennaro, University of Naples Federico II

Giacomo Di Gennaro is Full Professor of Legal and Deviance Sociology and teaches criminology and applied criminology at the Department of Political Science at the Federico II University of Naples. He coordinates the new Master's Degree Program in Criminological, Investigative, and Cybercrime Sciences, as well as the Master's Degree in Criminology and Criminal Law. Criminal Analysis and Urban Security Policies at the same department. He is the author of over 160 publications at the national and international level, the editor of several editorial series and a member of the scientific committees of several journals.

Marco Minicucci

Marco Minicucci is a Lieutenant General of the Carabinieri. He began his military career in 1979, first attending the "Nunziatella" Military School in Naples and subsequently the Military Academy in Modena and the Carabinieri Officers' School in Rome. During his career, he has held numerous operational positions. Promoted to Lieutenant General on January 1, 2024, he has been Deputy General Commander of the Carabinieri since April 22, 2025, and, since November 28, also Commander of the Institution's Training Organization.