The borderless world on the Internet has enhanced new criminal possibilities and the concept of vulnerability has developed in ways that were unknown just a few decades ago and cybercrime developments are far ahead of internet-related legislative measures.
Cybercrime is part of the EU policy cycle; therefore this topic receives significant interest, so it was no surprise that 29 participants from 22 countries attended CEPOL course 14/2014 - MS and Union capacities to detect, investigate and prosecute cybercrime.
Of certain interest is where and when, from a legislative view, a cybercrime is committed; these themes were highlighted and discussed on the course, which took place in Stockholm, Sweden on 7-10 October 2014.
The course started with a presentation on the overriding issues of cybercrime definitions and differing legislations that make it hard to really know the scope of the problem. A common understanding is the need for training.
Experts from the private sector accentuated how they repeatedly identify huge knowledge gaps when they assist the judicial system or corporations in investigating cyber related problems. Other presentations and activities included:
- A presentation from Europol’s cybercrime unit (EC3) on how controlling information is a means of achieving (criminal) power and also for the need of JITs (Joint Investigation Teams) to be able to work from an EU perspective;
- A presentation on forensics and underlined cooperation within the police;
- A study visit to The Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency;
- Case studies with examples of what has been crucial for cybercrime charges, but also how legislative differences can be problematic.
An expert from CEPOL identified some of the cornerstones of working in the cybercrime landscape, like cooperating with the private sector, and the need for training and certifying of investigators – and in this CEPOL plays an important role.
