'Government not serious about cyber-crime'
03/04/2008 11:03:05
The government's commitment to tackling internet crime has been criticised by the shadow home secretary.
Speaking at a Microsoft conference on law enforcement, David Davis called the absorption of the High-Tech Crime Unit into the Serious Organised Crime Agency "absurd" and said it had left a "yawning" gap in Britain's ability to fight cyber-crime.
"There's a public perception that e-crime is so pervasive that the police don't have the capacity to investigate each individual allegation, and that they're wasting their time reporting it. If citizens do fall victim to e-crime they need to be sure action will be taken," he asserted.
The Conservative MP promised new measures to eliminate internet crime -including the appointment of a minister for cyber-crime and the creation of a Police National Cybercrime Unit - if his party were to form a government.
Meanwhile, the Lords science and technology committee is re-examining data security and internet crime measures in Britain following the government's "complacent" attitude towards recommendations made by the body last August.
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