European police forces encouraged to hack?
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
In an effort to gain some ground on cybercriminals, it appears police forces all over Europe are being encouraged to "resort to remote searches" as another mode of surveillance, BBC News reports.
The plan, drawn up by the Council of the European Union, is said to improve Europe's fight against cybercrime and invites countries to introduce remote searches if they are already allowed by national law, according to the article. One such country is the UK, which allows police to remotely access computers under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000.
However, there has been some speculation at home at how successful police hacking may be in bringing cybercriminals to justice.
Professor Peter Sommer, a cybercrime expert at the London School of Economics, said police have had "sophisticated products" to hack into computers, but don't utilize them as much because "evidence gathered from hacking is difficult to defend in court," states BBC news.
This suggests SMBs may be better off employing tougher security standards on their websites and implementing a quick disaster recovery plan in the event of a breach than relying on police assistance.
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