Hague warns on cyber-criminals

Posted:

4 October 2012

Foreign Secretary William Hague will warn the attendees of an international conference in Budapest that a life of cyber-crime has never been easier to attain.

Hague will address the conference with the warning that tackling the actions of computer criminals is “one of the greatest global and strategic challenges of our time”.

He will tell of businesses which have had their confidential information stolen by hackers and how easy it can be for criminals to obtain pre-created malicious software allowing them to target people’s bank accounts, sometimes even with the inclusion of 24 hour helplines to aid them in their crimes.

Warning that cyber-attacks leave "all countries in the firing line", Hague is to explain that the UK intends to be a trendsetter in the world of tackling the issue of cyber-crime by putting £2m towards the construction of a high-tech cyber-installation designed to help deal with the issue.

This institution is also intended to help countries outside the UK with any problems they may encounter. To this end, he will also call for the establishment of an international hotline designed to assist those who are threatened by cyber-criminals.

Cyber-crime has become a hot button issue in recent years, with businesses, governments and individuals alike suffering a variety of different types of attack on vital computer systems. Businesses have lost confidential customer information, governments have had crucial security systems breached and individuals have had their identities stolen and their bank accounts drained.

In addition to warning of the hazards of cyber-crime, Hague will also speak out against governments who attempt to censor the internet or use its potential against its own citizens – for example, through restrictions on social media or preventing communications when civil unrest arises – referring to them as "erecting barricades against an unstoppable tide".