Considering the anonymity of cyberspace, cyber crime is emerging as a very concrete threat, and may be one of the most dangerous criminal threats ever.
This is according to Interpol secretary-general, Ronald Noble, speaking at the first Interpol Information Security Conference this week. The conference aimed to provide law enforcement representatives, industry leaders and academic experts worldwide a platform to collectively address the issue of information security.
The three-day conference, which ends today, brought together some 300 delegates from more than 50 countries to address the prevention and detection of hi-tech crimes.
This includes virus attacks and cyber-terrorism, which threaten national economies and global security, as well as key issues relating to personal data management and security and police communications networks.
Strategic moves
In his keynote address, Noble called for law enforcement worldwide to develop an international identity verification system against “the very concrete security threat” of cyber crime.
“A vital component in fighting trans-national crime must therefore include the policing of information security and the provision of secure communication channels for police worldwide based on common standards,” he said.
“We constantly upgrade Interpol's information security management system in a constant reassessment of the risks posed to our information and communications systems,” Noble added.
“This e-identification card is an identity management tool that will provide the highest security credentials service for Interpol staff and law enforcement officials worldwide working on behalf of Interpol,” he explained.
Border control
Once in place, it will enable these officials to identify themselves at international borders, at the Interpol General Secretariat or any other Interpol facility, as well as to securely access Interpol networks and communicate from virtually any fixed or mobile location in the world, added Noble.
“The next frontier that Interpol intends to lead in transformation is identity-based security.”
Noble said one of Interpol's strategic priorities is to provide its member countries with a secure global communication network. “This system, which we call I-24/7, enables police in our 188 member countries to exchange sensitive information, including names, photos, fingerprints, and DNA, with any other country or with the Interpol General Secretariat 24 hours a day and seven days a week,” he revealed.
This same system is also used to bring criminal data to frontline officers in the field, he added.
Travel checks
According to Noble, 53 of the organisation's member countries have installed a system called Mind/Find, which enables border officers to systematically scan incoming travelers' documents against our database of stolen and lost travel documents.
“In a country like the UK, this system generates more than 1.3 million queries per month and plays a significant role in protecting borders,” he pointed out.
As the largest international law enforcement organisation, Noble said Interpol is “ideally placed to create bridges between the police community and information security professionals worldwide, and thereby to co-ordinate the development of global police information security standards”.
He added that even when not using Interpol's communication channels, law enforcement needs a way of knowing that the person on the other end of any digital communication is who he or she purports to be - especially when communicating across borders.
“In other words, law enforcement worldwide needs an international identity verification system.”
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