دِراسةٌ لغويَّةٌ جنائيَّة للإبتزازالإلكتروني على مواقع التَّواصل الإجتماعي في العراق

RP-A Forensic Linguistic Study of Cyber Blackmail on Social Media in Iraq .pdf

The current study investigates cyber blackmail by analyzing twenty-three documented cases from the Ministry of Interior in Iraq. It examines cyber blackmail as a linguistic crime and explores its broader social implications from multiple perspectives. Despite the growing influence of this phenomenon, there has been limited research on the linguistic strategies employed by cybercriminals. Thus, this study attempts to bridge the gap by analyzing the language used by both male and female cyber criminals through the lens of forensic linguistics, contributing to a deeper understanding of cybercrime discourse and its implications for criminal investigations
The study mainly aims to identify the types of cyber blackmail, as well as the most and least frequently used conversational and impoliteness strategies employed by male and female blackmailers. Additionally, it examines the differences in the use of these strategies by gender for each type of cyber blackmail.
To achieve the aims and verify the proposed hypotheses, the study adopts an eclectic analytical model consisting of three principal components. The first component encompasses the types of cyber blackmail. The second component focuses on the variables of gender concerning conversational strategies employed by male and female blackmailers, drawing upon the theoretical frameworks of Coates (2013), Shuy (2005), and Andersson and Trudgill (1990). The third component includes Culpeper’s (1996) model of impoliteness. A mixed-method approach is used in data analysis using the Statistical Program for Social Sciences (SPSS).
The study concludes that: (1) Financial and sextortion blackmail are the most prevalent types of cyber blackmail in the data under scrutiny, (2) Directive /Commands recorded the highest rank in financial and sextortion blackmail particularly among males and Scripting the target strategy is dominant in beneficial blackmail whereas Compliment and Using ambiguity have achieved the lowest strategies used by cyber criminals for each type of cyber blackmail, (3)The analysis reveals statistically significant differences between male and female blackmailers in their use of various conversational strategies across all the types of cyber blackmail, and (4) Forensic linguists play a crucial role in legal processes by elucidating language usage, identifying potential threats or manipulative language, and aiding in the formulation of precise legal texts to advance fairness and consistency in judicial outcomes. The first, second, third, and sixth hypotheses of the study are verified; however, the fourth hypothesis is partially valid, while the fifth hypothesis is invalid. The study ends with several recommendations and suggestions for further studies.