UK failing on cyber-crime

Date: April 07, 2008
Source: Zdnetasia.co
By: Nick Heath

The Tories have launched a stinging attack on the U.K. government's failure to pay Ј1.3 million (US$2.6 million) to fund a national e-crime policing unit.

Shadow home secretary David Davis said a crime is committed online in the United Kingdom "every ten seconds"--costing U.K. businesses Ј10 billion (US$20 billion) a year.

Speaking at a conference on law enforcement, organized by Microsoft, Davis contrasted this to the Serious Organized Crime Agency devoting less than two percent of its staff and one percent of its budget to fighting e-crime.

He criticized the Home Office's delay in providing the Ј1.3 million (US$2.6 million) start-up costs for the Policing Central E-crime Unit (PCEU), proposed by the Metropolitan Police Service and Association of Chief Police Officers.

He said: "The threat is rising...with eight out of 10 major businesses targeted by cyber criminals last year. And yet...the government can't even cobble together the Ј1 million (US$2 million) necessary to start up a national police e-crime unit to start dealing with this escalating problem."

Davis reiterated the Conservative Party's commitment to starting its own dedicated cyber crime policing and reporting unit if elected to government.

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