  Background: Cyber offences, such as hacking, malware creation and
distribution, and online fraud, present a substantial threat to organizations
attempting to safeguard their data and information. By understanding the
evolving characteristics and motivations of individuals involved in these
activities, and the threats that they may pose, cyber security practitioners
will be better placed to understand and assess current threats to their systems
and the range of socio-technical mitigations that may best reduce these. Aim:
The reported work-in-progress aims to explore the extent to which findings from
prior academic literature regarding the characteristics and motivations of
offenders engaging in financially-motivated, cyber-dependent crime are
supported by the contemporary experiences and perspectives of practitioners
currently working in the cyber crime field. Method: A targeted, online survey
was developed consisting of both closed and open-ended questions relating to
current cyber threats and the characteristics and motivations of offenders
engaged in these activities. Sixteen practitioners working in law
enforcement-related domains in the cyber crime field completed the survey,
providing a combination of qualitative and quantitative data for analysis.
