The British Computer Society
(BCS) has set up a specialist thinktank to help police and others
fight increasingly sophisticated online fraud ahead of the 2012
Olympic Games in London.
The BCS Cybercrime Forensics Specialist Group was a response to
"the explosion in UK-based cybercrime", the BCS said. It will give
special attention to the role of cyber forensics in gathering,
processing and interpreting digital evidence for criminal
investigations.
The BCS said the UK is second after the US for the number of
cybercriminals, who cost the UK an estimated £6bn a year. "This is
according to the latest
PricewatrerhouseCoopers Internet Crime Report for the
Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, which
places Britain ahead of cybercrime hotspots Nigeria and Romania,"
it said.
The BCS Cybercrime Forensics Specialist Group will focus on the
latest developments in cybercrime forensics in the UK, worldwide
legal issues surrounding cybercrime forensics, and consider the
process of accrediting expert witnesses in court cases.
It will also work with the
National Police Improvement Agency (NPIA) and will be involved
in an established annual international conference on Cybercrime
Forensics Education and Training (CFET).
Denis Edgar-Nevill, the group's chairman, said, "We particularly
want to look at how the Chinese tackled this issue in the lead up
to this year's Olympics Games. As we move closer to 2012,
cybercrime will become an even more important focus for the
UK."
Edgar-Nevill said the growing complexity and vulnerability of
computer systems, coupled with ever-evolving forms of criminal
activities, needed continual research and development to safeguard
the integrity and security of systems for computer users. The BCS
Cybercrime Forensics Specialist Group would also try to meet a
growing demand for qualified people to help in cybercrime
investigations.
Members of the group include academic experts in the field of
cybercrime forensics, those involved in or supporting law
enforcement activities, as well as computer specialists and
lawyers.
They will help develop standards for the recovery and analysis
of information, and advise on the creation of laws, training and
accreditation for those preparing criminal court case material.
They will also offer to assess the quality of software tools used
by police cybercrime forensic teams.
The inaugural meeting of the specialist group was held today at
CanterburyChrist Church University.