The OCGs and individual criminals operating in the EU are highly diverse. They range from large ‘traditional’ OCGs to smaller groups and loose networks supported by individual criminals, who are hired and collaborate ad hoc. More than 5,000 OCGs operating on an international level are currently under investigation in the EU. This figure does not necessarily reflect an overall increase in organised crime activity in the EU compared to 2013, when Europol reported on the activities of 3,600 internationally operating OCGs in the EU. This increase is primarily a reflection of a much improved intelligence picture. The increase also points to the emergence of smaller criminal networks, especially in criminal markets that are highly dependent on the internet as part of their modi operandi or business model. Overall, the number of OCGs operating internationally highlights the substantial scope and potential impact of serious and organised crime on the EU.
The criminal markets involving illicit drugs, trafficking of human beings and migrant smuggling attract the largest numbers of OCGs and continue to generate the greatest profits among the various criminal markets in the EU. However, emerging crime phenomena such as the online trade in illicit goods and services may eclipse these markets in size and profits in the future. The online trade in illicit goods and services is no longer merely a modus operandi, but an expanding, highly dynamic and substantial criminal market itself.
Over the past few years, criminals of more than 180 nationalities were involved in serious and organised crime in the EU. The majority of OCGs operating on an international level are composed of members of more than one nationality. Nonetheless, the majority of the suspects (60%) involved in serious and organised crime in the EU are nationals of a Member State.
The diversity of the criminal actors operating in the EU is also reflected in the structures of the OCGs. 30% to 40% of the OCGs operating on an international level feature loose network structures. An approximate 20% of these networks only exist for a short period of time and are set up to support specific criminal ventures. Hierarchically structured OCGs continue to dominate traditional criminal markets.
The fragmentation of the serious and organised crime landscape and the emergence of more groups and looser networks detailed in the SOCTA 2013 did not affect all criminal markets. The fragmentation of criminal markets was particularly pronounced in relation to highly cyber-dependent criminal activities. Around these types of activities, an increasing number of individual criminal entrepreneurs come together on an ad hoc basis for specific criminal ventures or to deliver CaaS.
45% of the OCGs reported for the SOCTA 2017 are involved in more than one criminal activity
Many OCGs have expanded their crime portfolio in response to the sustained high level of demand for smuggling services during the migration crisis.
An increasing number of individual criminal entrepreneurs come together on an ad hoc basis for specific criminal ventures or to deliver CaaS
OCGs use corruption to infiltrate public and private sector organisations relying on bribery, conflicts of interest, trading in influence and collusion in order to facilitate their criminal activities. Corruption distorts legitimate competition and erodes public trust in authorities and legal systems.
Corruption is used to enable all types of criminal activity. However, the prevalence and scale of corruption associated with different crimes vary. Some criminal activities use corruption as an integral part of their modus operandi.
Corruption is increasingly facilitated by online services. Some criminals use cryptocurrencies and alternative banking platforms to transfer funds to their accomplices in the public and private sector. The use of these techniques makes it more difficult to detect financial flows and to uncover corruption.
