Cybercrime Control, Public Satisfaction and Statistical Validation: A Socio-Legal Study Using Chi-Square and Ordinal Logistic Regression Framework

Cyber crime, Public satisfaction, Chi-square Goodness-of-Fit test, Ordinal logistic regression, Cyber law enforcement, Information Technology Act, 2000, Cyber police stations, Digital forensics, AI-based cyber crime, Cyber safety awareness

Cybercrime has become a socio-legal issue with the growth in internet banking, UPI, apps, social media, e-learning, e-governance and online communication. This growing trend in using digital platforms has brought new vulnerabilities like online fraud, identity theft, hacking, phishing, cyberstalking, cyber impersonation and misuse of social media. The current research looked at the control of cyber crime and public perception through an empirical study of 200 respondents. The research examined the awareness of cybercrime, awareness of the Information Technology Act, 2000, perception of cyber laws, need for legal updates, need for separate laws for AI-based crimes, police response, availability of cyber police stations, technical infrastructure, case disposal time, cybercrime experience, reporting behaviour and need for cyber safety education. The findings revealed that 6% of the respondents were completely aware of the Information Technology Act, 2000, 43% were partially aware and 25% were unaware. 51% of respondents felt that enforcement of cyber laws was not effective, 69.5% felt the number of cyber police stations was not sufficient and 65% felt the time taken to dispose of the case was too long. Cyber fraud was the most witnessed cyber crime (59.5%). The research also suggested a comparative statistical approach through Chi-square Goodness-of-Fit test, and ordinal logistic regression. The Chi-square test provided an indication of significant distribution of responses in categories, while ordinal logistic regression was conceptually apt to explore the relationship between awareness, enforcement, police response, infrastructure and institutional factors with satisfaction. The results suggested that cybercrime control was seen as important but not wholly effective. It was found that cyber law enforcement, police response, technical infrastructure, technical and digital forensic support, awareness creation and future-proofing law reform for AI-based crimes are needed to enhance satisfaction with cybercrime control.