The UK should use its presidency of the European Union
and the G8 to take the lead in co-ordinating international action
against e-crime, following a sharp rise in the cost computer crime
to businesses, according to an influential group of IT
professionals, MPs and civil servants.
Computer crime costs businesses far more than physical crime but
receives only a fraction of police resources, a report by the
European Information Society Group, and the Institute for Public
Policy Research published today claims.
"The economic well being of the UK in a globally competitive
knowledge economy depends increasingly on the security of London as
an international electronic trading centre. The tax revenues at
stake are many times the budgets available for the War Against
Terror," according to the report.
Despite these risks, less than 1% of UK police have been trained
to gather computer evidence and there are fewer than 100 experts in
the country capable of analysing computer evidence to court
standards.
"There are more consultants carrying out work on ID cards than
there are police officers fighting computer crime," said Philip
Virgo Eurim Secretary general.
Police, government, and businesses need to work closer together
in a structured way, to share intelligence, expertise and resources
in fighting e-crime, and to develop common investigation and
evidence gathering techniques, according to the report.
It urges the law enforcement agencies to follow the lead of the
US by co-opting private sector IT specialists as "specialist
constables" to assist in computer crime investigations.
The US has trained over 600 retired IT and law enforcement
professionals as "sliver surfers" to help the investigation into
online paedophiles. Retired IT professionals in the UK, could form
a similar resource to fight computer crime of all types, the report
will suggest.
Police evidence gathering practices and standards should be made
available to private sector security specialists to help them
gather forensic evidence in a way that could form the basis of
police prosecution, the report will recommend.
"The load on law enforcement could be significantly reduced if
investigations in the private sector could also be carried out by
accredited staff working to standards and procedures commonly
recognised across the public and private sectors."
Internet crime and disorder partnerships, made up of both police
and private sector investigators, should also be created to focus
on protecting the communications infrastructure, the finance
sector, mass market internet users, and children. The model has
already been successfully used in the UK to fight credit card
fraud.
Main recommendations
- The UK should use its presidency of the EU and G8 in 2005 to
take the lead in fighting computer crime
- Funding should be allocated to bring together government, law
enforcement, regulators, industry to improve co-operation on
computer crime
- Simple procedures should be developed for IT staff if they
suspect a criminal incident
- Police guidelines on investigating computer crime should be
made available to businesses, so police and private investigators
use the same procedures
- Joint industry/law enforcement units should be developed to
fight computer crime
- The National High Tech Crime Unit should create an initiative
to allow police and the private sector to share best practice,
knowledge and tools
- Home office to investigate how civilian investigators can work
with police, perhaps as specialist constables.
- Home office should fund internet crime and disorder
partnerships
- Internet policy should fall under a regulator equivalent to a
conventional police authority