Fergie's Tech Blog

EU Wants New Cyber Crime Legislation

Tom Young writes on ITNews.com.au:

The European Commission wants to introduce harsher penalties for cyber criminals, potentially increasing jail sentences to five years.

At a meeting of industry body the Messaging Anti Abuse Working Group in Holland, Radomir Jansky, a senior cyber crime official in the Commission, said new legislation was vital.

"We need new legislation to fight cyber attacks. Large-scale attacks are on the rise but penalties…are not severe enough to dissuade criminals," he said, according to The Financial Times.

"The cost for businesses, law enforcement and state authorities is on the rise, and we need to recognise that."

The Commission also wants to create an EU-wide reporting system so nations can raise the alarm over attacks, and data on attacks can be collected and aggregated.

posted by Fergie @ 6/15/2009 04:54:00 PM