Offense typologies as structured trajectories

\(L^{*}_{g,A} = \arg\underset{L \in \mathrm{Seq}(A)}{\max}\,\mathbb{E}\big[U_g(L)\big]\)

Each offense is a goal-dependent trajectory accelerated through platform affordances, realized as a state path in the exploitation state machine.

Backbone invariants

Initial contact Conditioning Exploitation Maintenance

Law 1 (Contact Primacy): every trajectory begins at initial contact. Law 2 (Backbone Invariance): backbone phases appear across typologies. Variant phases between conditioning and exploitation diverge by goal.

All typologies

Elder Fraud

Trust-based financial exploitation

Scammers condition elderly victims through impersonation, urgency, and platform-mediated trust signals before extracting assets.

Contact discovery Unmonitored comm. Coordination
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Trafficking

Commercial exploitation networks

Recruitment, conditioning, and maintenance of victims through classifieds, messaging, and payment rails that lower coordination cost.

Control Distribution infra Coordination
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Racketeering & Enterprises

Cyber RICO and coordinated criminal enterprises

Online-formed enterprises coordinate social engineering, wire fraud, and laundering at scale with explicit role differentiation.

Coordination Anonymity Unmonitored comm.
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Extortion

Coercion leverage cycles

Offenders obtain leverage through sensitive material or threats, then cycle coercion via platforms that preserve leverage and enable rapid payment.

Coercion leverage Ephemerality Unmonitored comm.
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