Today, virtual space has become the new frontier of organized crime. Mafias are increasingly hybrid, capable of operating both online and offline.

From a massive collection of data extracted from Wikipedia and the main Social Network Sites (SNSs), YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok, an in-depth analysis was carried out, making it possible to elaborate some trends that track the participation and intervention of mobsters, affiliates and sympathizers in the digital sphere.

The research, carried out in full respect of privacy, has shown that mafias’ communication processes are made transparent through the use of social networks, where "fans" promote the "brand" through a concept of power that exalts luxury and honour; furthermore, the success of the organization is achieved through the memory of those who gave their lives and those who suffered imprisonment. Emoticons, posts, shared content, hashtags, memes and songs are structured within a slang that reaches the surface of user generated content platforms, becoming accompanying elements that push the interpretation of the message in the direction of the mafia mindset.

The research project, promoted by the Magna Grecia Foundation and overseen by Prof. Marcello Ravveduto, forms the basis of the first report on mafias in the digital age and will be presented in the Conference Room of the Foreign Press Association. Together with Esma Cakir, President of the Foreign Press Association, Nino Foti, President of the Magna Grecia Foundation, Antonio Nicaso, Professor at Queen's University and Member of the Scientific Committee of the Magna Grecia Foundation, Maurizio Vallone, Director of the Anti-Mafia Investigative Directorate and Marcello Ravveduto, Professor of Digital Public History at the University of Salerno and Modena-Reggio Emilia took part in the event.