http://www.nst.com.my/z//TECH/Computimes/Highlight/20020404104653/wartrevamp By ROZANA SANI Fri, 05 Apr 2002 THE Royal Malaysian Police has put forth a proposal to beef up its technology crime investigation (TCI) team under the commercial crime division to be better prepared when handling information and communications technology (ICT)-related criminal cases. Under the proposal, the police expects to grow the current six-man team to a staff strength of 21 early next year at the latest. TCI's chief inspector Mahfuz Ab Majid told Computimes in Petaling Jaya that the increase in manpower is required to carry out the necessary research on info-security trends and issues as well as investigative duties which are part and parcel of police work. "Research is integral to this type of unit. We have to compile a lot of research on things happening inside and outside (the country) to safeguard the public against such crimes," he said. According to Mahfuz, although the number of reported ICT-related criminal cases so far has been few and are often "prankster-type" electronic mail (e-mail) abuse, the police expects more serious crimes to be reported when ICT users become more knowledgeable and confident. "At present, the types of cases reported include hacking, e-mail abuse, illegal online pyramid schemes, distribution of pirated software and intent fraud. While the current trend points to mischief making, it is only a matter of time such crimes escalate to more serious crimes such as espionage," he said, adding that the development in electronic commerce (e-commerce) warrants new approaches in forensics, investigation and prosecution. Commenting on court proceedings, Mahfuz said many reports are not pursued and are often withdrawn by complainants as no serious financial loss was experienced. "However, the whole legal process must be up to speed to be able to deal with cases involving the breach of info-security. And this not only involves the efficiency of the police, but also the prosecution and the judiciary. The whole system is preparing to bring this type of cases to court using cyberlaws," he said. "Previously, we brought this type of cases to court using the older acts. However, we need to be constantly reviewing the laws so as to cover new technology." On the part of the police, Mahfuz said the TCI team is working towards encouraging and assisting officers on the ground to open ICT-related cases. "The workload in commercial crime, which includes computer crime, is heavy and Bukit Aman may be unable to cover the whole country efficiently. As the Bukit Aman personnel are trained constantly at an in-depth level and have connections with technology providers such as TMnet and Jaring, we will try to assist them at all levels in opening simpler cases." For more hi-tech cases, the Kuala Lumpur team is more equipped as it has people who can provide support technically and knowledge-wise, he added. Mahfuz said the police is also working with its counterparts in other countries to combat ICT-related crimes. "The National Police of Japan has a database especially on hi-tech crimes, to which we are linked. We can access the database directly and give feedback to them as well as share knowledge," he said, adding that there are 10 countries in Asean and Asia which have links to the database. "The database is crucial as it allows users to recognise the same problem, the same people or the same methods being used in particular cases," he said. Earlier, Mahfuz gave a talk on the enforcement of cyberlaws at the E-security Seminar organised by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC). MCMC's chairman Tan Sri Nuraizah Abdul Hamid had earlier launched the seminar, which was part of a series of campaigns to create awareness on info-security threats to the general public. "Our intention is long term. We want to generate the awareness and make sure people are conscious that they also are subject to hacking and virus attacks. What happens to the personal computer can affect the whole system and each user should know his or her responsibility to safeguard against such incidents. With less happenings, there will be less damage," said Nuraizah. MCMC, with partners like the Malaysian Administrative Modernisation and Management Planning Unit (Mampu), the Association of the Computer and Multimedia Industry of Malaysia (Pikom) and the police, plan to go to cities where ICT usage is high. - ISN is currently hosted by Attrition.org To unsubscribe email majordomoat_private with 'unsubscribe isn' in the BODY of the mail.
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