Computer crime

Computer crime, commonly recently referred to as cyber-crime and less recently e-crime, refers to crimes which involve the use of computers or computer networks such as the internet.

On 7 February 2007, during a debate on the Government's crime record, Margaret Moran MP urged the house to "recognise that e-crime is now a mainstream issue" and suggested that:

We should take up a suggestion of EURIM, the IT parliamentary and industry group that I chair, and of the Met report, although we should go further than it recommends. We should slap a sheriff's badge on many people in the IT industry, where there are legions of security and technology experts, and give them greater powers to tackle some of these issues, because our police and resources will never keep up with the rate of change. We need to place greater emphasis across Departments—not only in the Home Office—on finding ways to tackle this problem. Confidence in our economy could rest on it.[1]

Questions

On 10/01/2013, Gareth Thomas MP asked

the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the cost to the economy of cyber crime in the UK in (a) 2010-11 and (b) 2011-12; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire MP answered

The Detica "Cost of Cyber Crime" report, published in February 2011 in partnership with the Office of Cyber Security and Information Assurance in the Cabinet Office, estimated the cost of cyber crime to the UK to be as much as £27 billion per annum. What is clear is that the costs are high and rising. This is why the Government has committed £650 million to the National Cyber Security Programme to support economic prosperity, protect national security and safeguard the public's way of life by building a more trusted and resilient digital environment.

Related Pages

• Police and Justice Bill 2006
• Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act
• Identity Theft and Identity Cards
• Internet Fraud
• Biometrics
• Online harassment
• Computer security
• National Crime Agency