Tories get tough on cyber-crime

The Conservative Party has announced a range of measures aimed at tackling cyber-crime and tightening data protection in the UK.

Proposals include the creation of a new post of cyber-security minister to combat what the party calls the "growing threat" of online crime.

The appointment is part of a host of initiatives proposed by Shadow Home Secretary David Davis at the E-Crime Congress 2008 in London yesterday.

"Cyber-crime is a growing and serious threat to individuals, business and government," said Davis. "It is a problem that will continue to escalate as technology changes."

The Tories are calling for new offences for civil servants and government contractors who lose personal data, and a new police squad to track down and prosecute cyber-criminals.

The proposed team would be part of the Crown Prosecution Service, working alongside a proposed Police National Cybercrime Unit and acting on leads submitted to a new website for the centralised reporting of internet crimes.

Proposals also include a so-called "breach law" which would force financial institutions to inform the Financial Services Authority in the event of confidential customer data being breached.

The proposals are widely seen as an attempt by the opposition to capitalise on recent personal data debacles at government departments.

See also:

iPhone will be 'primary target' for hackers in 2008

Security firm predicts trouble ahead for Apple's handset  11 Dec 2007

Conference calls for global cyber-crime police

Indian body demands more cooperation to fight electronic crime  14 Sep 2007

Hackers up the ante with targeted attacks

Gartner analyst paints gloomy picture  18 Sep 2006

Hackers, the FBI needs you

Appeal shows ‘desperate technical ineptness’, warns security expert  03 Aug 2006

Russia tries to unite world against cyber-crime

Internet crime as deadly as weapons of mass destruction, says Russia's interior minister  20 Apr 2006

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