The Talent Pipeline Nobody Talks About: What Young People Told Us About Cybercrime
KnowBe4, Wednesday, August 12th, 2026
KnowBe4 research examines how criminal networks recruit young people and how academies can redirect them.
KnowBe4 published research on how online criminal networks recruit young talent, based on what young people themselves reported.
One respondent from South Africa described how peers slide into cybercrime: someone online shows them a trick that feels harmless, then the community pulls them in, and it feels like skill rather than crime.
The post notes what is absent from that account - no villain, no dark web, no stereotypical hacker imagery. It argues cybersecurity academies can redirect that potential into ethical defence work. The research frames cybercrime recruitment as a talent pipeline problem.