{"id":4595,"date":"2012-08-31T07:12:45","date_gmt":"2012-08-31T12:12:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ict-pulse.com\/?p=4595"},"modified":"2012-09-07T19:29:39","modified_gmt":"2012-09-08T00:29:39","slug":"cyber-crime-caribbean-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/2012\/08\/cyber-crime-caribbean-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Cyber crime: what can we in the Caribbean do about it?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 8th Caribbean Internet Governance Forum has just concluded in Saint Lucia. We revisit the discussion on cyber crime in the Caribbean<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Caribbean Internet Governance Forum (CIGF) is in its eighth year and was held in Saint Lucia on 29\u201430 August. Organised by the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU)<\/a>, the Forum facilitates an annual review of Caribbean Internet Governance Framework, which was initially prepared in 2009. Typically, the agenda also includes discussions on key Internet Governance (IG) issues and developments in the region. This year was no different. Two of the subjects highlighted and for which action from Caribbean governments was being advocated, were cyber security and Internet Exchange Points (IXPs). This post, the first of at least four on this year\u2019s CIGF, summarises the talk given on cyber crime in the Caribbean. The CTU promises to publish the presentations on its website next week.<\/p>\n

Key discussion points<\/h3>\n
\"\"<\/a>

Gregory Richardson giving his talk on Cyber crime in the Caribbean<\/p><\/div>\n

Long-time CTU collaborator, Gregory Richardson, Chief Executive Officer of 1337 Leet Networks, Inc.<\/a>, gave a rousing presentation on \u201cCyber crime in the Caribbean\u201d. In establishing a context for his talk, Richardson highlighted that the largest cyber crime department in the United States Secret Service focuses on the Caribbean. Additionally, the United States, Canada and other developed countries have been investing millions in the Caribbean to support improvement of our cyber defences, in the hope of minimising the incidents to which they might be exposed. Nevertheless cyber crime in the Caribbean is still on the rise. Furthermore, the profits from cyber crime are widely held to exceed that of generated from cocaine, marijuana, heroin (the illegal drug trade) combined! Hence it is exceedingly lucrative and is poised to grow even more into the foreseeable future.<\/p>\n

Having gotten participants\u2019 attention with that introduction, Richardson\u00a0then focussed on what could be done to improve the Caribbean region\u2019s success in combating cyber crime. The four points he described, which are outlined below, require commitment and resolve from both the private and public sectors:<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0 A cultural and mental shift to exercise vigilance with respect to cyber security is essential. <\/strong>Far too often, too much is taken for granted in the area of network security. For example, we overestimate the capabilities of network security facilities, such as firewalls and antiviruses. We believe (among other things) that:<\/p>\n