Protection of personal data in cyber space with special reference to cyber crime in the Republic of North Macedonia in the period from 2018 to 2022

Rapid development of information technologies and their increasing sophistication make the fight against criminal activities in the field of computer crime increasingly difficult and complicated. The most common forms of theft and fraud involving the misuse of information and communication technologies include: violation of personal data, fraud with credit cards and securities, identity theft, unauthorized use and usurpation of computer services, as well as computer espionage. One of the biggest challenges in the modern digital environment is the protection of privacy and personal data, especially in the context of increasingly applied artificial intelligence. Special emphasis is placed on respecting the principles
of personal data protection during the development of artificial intelligence, on the right of an individual to be exempted from the automated decision-making process, as
well as on the protection of rights guaranteed by the Personal Data Protection Act. In the framework of this work, an analysis and investigation of the level of cybercrime in
the Republic of North Macedonia in the period from 2018 to 2022 was carried out. The number and type of crimes in the area of computer crime, possible crimes, as well as estimated material damage caused as a result of a cyber attack are shown. The research was conducted on the basis of official data obtained from the Ministries
of Internal Affairs through their annual work reports.