Combating cybercrime through cooperation focus of INTERPOL-Europol conference

Identifying new threats and trends and tracking cybercriminals online to bring them to justice in the real world are among the key areas to be addressed during the 2nd INTERPOL-Europol cybercrime conference.

Bringing together some 230 specialists from law enforcement, the private sector and academia from 55 countries, the three-day conference (1-3 October) which has the theme 'Cybercrime investigations - the full cycle', will also look at ways all involved sectors can work more closely together to maximize cooperation through their respective areas of expertise.

"To help build the first and last lines of defense against the cyberthreats of today and tomorrow, all of us representing law enforcement, governments, regional and international institutions, academia and the private sector need to work together," said Secretary General Ronald K. Noble.

"These lines must be assembled and they must hold, reinforced by our experience, expertise, and potential.

"Working together, we aim to realize a vision of our world where governments and critical infrastructure are protected, the integrity and continuity of businesses can be assured, and individuals and families can go online without having their personal identity or finances compromised," concluded the INTERPOL Chief.

The conference follows the formal handover to INTERPOL by the Singapore government of the INTERPOL Global Complex for Innovation (IGCI), the world police body's state-of-the-art facility to assist law enforcement tackle cybercrime and provide innovative training and operational support.

"Cybercrime remains one of the most pervasive threats to global security, and if we are to be effective in our efforts to combat this this threat, we must build capacity at the national, regional and international levels," said Noboru Nakatani, Executive Director of the IGCI.

"It is through the creation of dedicated law enforcement facilities such as the INTERPOL Global Complex for Innovation, in coordination with our partners around the world, that we will close the net on cybercriminals," concluded Mr Nakatani.

Troels Oerting, head of Europol's European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) said the joint INTERPOL-EC3 cybercrime conference sends a number of significant signals to global law enforcement, private parties and organized crime.

"To our partners in global law enforcement and stakeholders in industry, security and academia, this conference is a strong example of the determination of the two main international actors joining forces to prevent and prosecute cybercrime, increase capacity and enhance intelligence in order to serve our respective colleagues and citizens on the frontline" said Mr Oerting.

"At the same time, we send a forceful message to the cybercriminal networks that global cybercrime units all over the world have decided to find ways to overcome obstacles and exploit all possibilities to identify and track them down. Our common goal is to make life easier for law enforcement, industry, and citizens, and much more difficult and risky for criminals," concluded Mr Oerting.

Money laundering through online gambling, virtual currencies, and digital forensics analysis are also high on the agenda of the joint conference, organized alternately by INTERPOL and Europol.

Throughout the conference, delegates will also follow a 'virtual' investigation through all its stages, from identifying the cyber threat, information exchange via a range of partners through to the prosecution of the offenders. The exercise is aimed at providing an overview of the complexities in a cybercrime investigation across a range of jurisdictions and demonstrating best practice in evidence gathering.