Government plans cyber security hub

The Government’s “transformative programme” to tackle cybercrime proposes that law enforcement agencies work closer with the private sector and use the expertise of people willing to volunteer to ‘police’ the internet.

The private sectors are described as having a crucial role to play in the UK’s cyber security. It is hoped that in the next four years, private organisations such as energy, pharmaceutical and finance companies, will be able to set up a security hub to share information and resources in order to transform the response to a common challenge.

The Cabinet Secretary, Francis Maude, said the UK Government takes the risks from cyber security seriously which is why the 2010 National Security Strategy rated cyber attacks as a ‘Tier 1’ threat and why, despite a tight fiscal situation, it has set £650 million aside over four years to develop its response.

Half of this is expected to go to GCHQ, the Government’s communications listening service, which will explore sharing its technology with the private sector.

A new Defence Cyber Operations Group is to be created in the Ministry of Defence and new military tactics and capabilities will be developed. A general will be appointed to head up the development of cyber defences.

The strategy also urges police, prosecutors and the courts to use existing powers to restrict and monitor computer use by convicted cyber criminals, who are considered likely to strike again online.

The Ministry of Justice and Home Office will consider whether orders restricting internet use can be enforced using ‘cyber tags’; software that triggers automatic warnings to the police or probation services that a suspect is in breach of an order.

All police forces will also be encouraged to recruit and train ‘cyber specials’ – volunteers with expert knowledge of cybercrime – following their successful introduction by the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS).

Measures in the strategy relating to law enforcement include:

•Bring together existing specialist law enforcement capability on cybercrime into the new National Crime Agency (NCA). Encourage the use of ‘cyber-specials’ to make more use of those with specialist skills to help the police.

•Build an effective and easy-to-use single point for reporting cyber fraud and improve the police response at a local level for those who are victims of cybercrime.

•Work with other countries to make sure that we can cooperate on cross-border law enforcement and deny safe havens to cyber criminals.

•Encourage the courts in the UK to use existing powers to impose appropriate online sanctions for online offences.

The UK Cyber Security Strategy: Protecting and promoting the UK in a digital world set out a vision for 2015 for the UK to derive huge economic and social value from a vibrant, resilient and secure cyberspace.

Mr Maude said: “Closer partnership between the public and private sectors is crucial. The strategy heralds a new era of unprecedented cooperation between the Government and industry on cyber security.

“Together with the private sector, we are pioneering a new national cyber security hub that will allow the Government and businesses to exchange information on threats and responses.

“This promises to transform the way we manage cyber-attacks and greatly strengthen our security capacity.”

A pilot of the hub is due to start in December using five business sectors – defence, finance, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals and energy – before being fully rolled out in 2012.

The strategy was welcomed by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) lead on e-crime, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Janet Williams.

“Law enforcement is well aware that e-crime is a large and growing problem in the UK and the challenges for police are to ensure that we can work effectively with the private sector to ensure we have the best capabilities to tackle cyber criminality.”

Ms Williams said such partnership has already prov