Countering corruption in the context of digitalisation: criminal and criminological aspects

Purpose: In today’s world, the prevention and detection of corruption offences are becoming increasingly important. The most important tasks are to create an intolerant public attitude towards this phenomenon, to monitor it in dynamics and to develop new ways of combating it, responding to the development and improvement of criminal techniques. The purpose of this paper is to study the practice of introducing e-customs, the possible prospects related to the creation of an intellectual customs office. Design/methodology/approach: An analytical method was used, including the study of scientific literature and publications, current legislation, statistics, customs plans and practices and foreign experience. Findings: It is indicated that the variability of the nature and methods of committing crimes in the context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution makes it appropriate to formulate corruption as a formal offence. Practical implications: This study may be of use to students and academics, as well as practitioners in customs, law enforcement agencies and legislative bodies. Originality/value: Suggestions have been made to improve approaches to planning work towards digitalisation in the customs sector, in terms of analysing and considering the potential for corruption-proneness and anti-corruption potential of innovations, exploring the use of blockchain for conducting procedures, maintaining registers and other record-keeping systems. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.