Hackers who wreak havoc on computer systems will also be pursued by up to eighty "cyber cops" who are to form Britain's first law enforcement agency set up to tackle computer crime.

Cybercrime is now seen as one of the fastest growing criminal activities. More than 60% of Britain's online businesses have been victims of hacking.

But civil liberties groups are worried about the extent of the unit's powers. They believe the police will be able to intercept private e-mails of innocent people without proper authority.

But can the police ever win the hi-tech war? Is this force going to be enough to combat online crime?

This debate is now closed. Read a selection of your comments below.

Your reaction

If we are to have any freedom, then the police can never stop all crimes. Which do you want more, freedom or a zero crime rate?
Richard T. Ketchum, USA

As an IT security specialist, I know that it is very difficult to stop cyber crime. I also think that enacting more laws and giving the police intrusive power is the wrong approach. Emphasis should be on educating the public, as well as cybercrime forces, on the systems which are most vulnerable and how to defend them. There should also be a measure of responsibility put on owners of systems which fall prey to hackers. Most hacked sites are broken into with relative ease, due to the lax approach to implementation of systems security.
Mwasi, J, Atlanta, USA

Even if the police win the battle, the public loses the war in the courts. What is the point in spending millions of pounds and thousands of hours of effort, to see the criminals get ludicrously short sentences, as happened in the big paedophile trial two months ago?
Charles Simon, England

Organised crime mongers will hardly be running scared Max, UK

One specialist from each constabulary? Too little, too late. This should have been put in place five years ago to develop with the Internet rather than chase it. Organised crime mongers will hardly be running scared.
Max, UK

Reading and watching your feature on cybercrime makes me very worried. The police - no matter how many of them there are - will never be able to fully control the Internet. It's good to see investment in tackling crime on the Internet. I hope other governments will follow suit.
Sarah Mary, Ireland

Why not go the whole hog and censor all mail, tap all phones, tag everybody with tracers to keep tabs on their whereabouts, microchip everybody to make identification positive (after all it works for dogs and cats), put surveillance cameras every 100 yards and introduce a curfew from 9.00pm until 6.00am?
Brian W, U K

I don't believe the police can win the hi-tech war Emmet McDonough, UK

This is yet another policy designed to increase the scope for catching criminals (which is good for everyone), but the balance between this and civil liberties has unfortunately been skewed. Ever since the police have been able to demand encryption keys, the situation has taken a turn for the worst. It seems now that ordinary people now must pay for the actions of a minority. I don't believe the police can win the hi-tech war. As the Internet becomes more of a server-side service, we will see a greater intrusion on our lives from Big Brother...
Emmet McDonough, UK

Existing laws already cover crimes such as credit card fraud and paedophilia. These crimes are crimes no matter what medium is used by the criminals, so why should new regulations be needed for the Internet? Emails are private communications and should be protected from surveillance. As with phone taps, interception of emails should only be permitted by warrant on a case-by-case basis.
Khan, UK

The appointment of a cybercrime unit is naturally to be welcomed, as the Internet represents one of the most target rich environments for those seeking a life of crime. Unfortunately, the government's track record when dealing with the Internet and those services operating within it is appalling.
Chris Walker, UK

Only by tackling this problem globally can a solution be found Dave Braithwaite, England

Britain has some of the most powerful anti-cybercrime laws in the world: the RIP Act. Unfortunately, it cannot stop the criminals who know what they're doing because the Internet is global. Only by tackling this problem globally can a solution be found.
Dave Braithwaite, England

So, 60% of business have been "hacked", by this I assume they mean cracked, so that means at least 60% of business have sacked one or more "IT professional" for being a waste of space. If your security is bad, you will be cracked. Perhaps if this new force spent its time checking businesses are secure it might help, rather than snooping about in other people's email.
Hamish, Scotland

When businesses are affected by online crime it probably comes as a complete surprise and most likely they would not know where to turn to for advice. This new call centre of cyber cops should help to rectify this problem. Initially businesses should be able to contract the cyber cops before contacting their lawyers, insurance companies and halting payments to contractors or staff. Lawyers can deal with most of the work against cyber crime through the civil courts but it may be useful to be able to tell an insurance company that the crime has been reported to the police and quote a "crime number".
John Ley, London, England

Computer crimes can be difficult to trace but easy to commit Emma, Australia

If 60% of businesses have had their computers hacked into, how can up to 80 policeman stop that kind of crime? Computer crimes can be difficult to trace but easy for those who know about computers to commit. If the police are serious about targeting this type of crime, they will need more experts to be working against hackers.
Emma, Australia

Statistics can be manipulated to "prove" anything, and the police are masters at it. 60% of online businesses have been hacked? Define hacking! Have they actually been defrauded or robbed, or perhaps just slightly inconvenienced? I find it encouraging that the authorities have at least recognised that computer crime exists. They would better serve us by researching and attacking what real crime exists - rather than exploiting the fears of technical neophytes to enact sweeping new powers they can then abuse.
Dave Macaulay, Canada

Why not leave it to the professionals Jeff Jenkins, UK

Eighty police officers trying to fight cybercrime is nowhere near enough. There are thousands of cyber-criminals out there who will surely be laughing their socks off at this news! Why not leave it to the professionals at Menwith Hill and other such establishments?
Jeff Jenkins, UK

As a serving police officer, I can say that the police will never catch 100% of cyber criminals, similarly we do not catch 100% of normal criminals. That is a function of how much evidence is available, and the rules of court. Anyone who thinks they can do better is welcome to either join the police and prove it, or write to their MP and ask them to change the law. The fact that we can monitor those who choose to access paedophile sites and get search warrants on the basis of that information should be welcome to all in Britain, certainly those how have kids. But if you want everyone in Britain who accesses paedophile sites to be arrested and charged, then your tax bill is going to rocket. How much are you prepared to pay per pound of wages so that we can do this fully?
Nick Hogarth, UK

We need an international police force with powers of arrest throughout the world Alex Banks, Wales, living in Sweden

It's not difficult to find them, but it's difficult to stop them. The police would only have jurisdiction in the UK. What are they going to do to the pornographers who are based in Russia? We need an international police force with powers of arrest throughout the world.
Alex Banks, Wales, living in Sweden

We believe that the police can't win this war against cyber crime. Hackers always tend to be anonymous. Even If the police find a way to catch them now, the hackers will find another way for the police not to find them.
Tim en Christophe, Belgium

Just like any other human activity, if a member of the public files a "complaint", then the authorities have the duty to at least investigate it. Now, whether they can then actually do anything about an Internet complaint, assuming they wish to pursue a criminal prosecution, is another matter! But I welcome this move because I see nothing to be worried about from the authorities ... with the millions of pieces of mail flying through the ether everyday, one would have to be extremely paranoid to think "they" are watching YOU! But such a police activity just might deter would-be perverts and criminals ... a fat chance, one might think, but even one victory on this score is better than none.
Mark M. Newdick, USA/UK

Police won't be able to win this war. A unit of cyber cops isn't enough to beat the cyber criminals - they will always invent new viruses. Police will maybe be able to destroy these viruses but they will never be able to prevent that criminals invent new ones. I think the Internet is a very easy target for hackers, they have a whole world in their hands.
Koen, Gunther, Belgium

I do not relish the thought of someone reading my e-mail, but am resigned to the fact that they do already Jason, Spain (UK Expat)

The culture of hacking for fun is just that, a culture. In the most usual of cases, it is done by young computer programmers who seek recognition among their peers in a similar way to graffiti artists. The deeper problem lies with the organized crime units, who are, like all serious crime, index-linked with technology and sadly leave our police forces trailing far behind. I do not relish the thought of someone reading my e-mail, but am resigned to the fact that they do already, (just look at the technology the US spy plane was carrying!) We must all be vigilant in respect of our own business.
Jason, Spain (UK Expat)

This is going to be fun! I can't wait to watch these �20K per year people of average intelligence start a war against the cream of society. Lets face it, anyone who's good enough to do this particular job well wouldn't have joined the police force in the first place. It won't be long before they give in and sit in the super highway lay-by's waiting to trap passing emails with their interpretation of racist, activist etc content. Any bright individual should get up to speed on their encryption skills because there's going to be a lot of business opportunity in that area!
MN, UK & Germany

Whether it has significant effect or not, at least someone is trying to do something. Bravo...keep it up. Finally someone is doing the right thing.
Robin, Dubai

Everyone here keeps using the word "hacker". A hacker does not take part in cyber crimes. A CRACKER does. Hackers only like to take things apart to see how they work. Please be sure to make the distinction. We hackers do not like to be associated with this sort of thing at all!
Mike Dean, Channel Islands, UK

Perhaps someone will invent a computer screen that automatically delivers a slap on the wrist Tanya Smithson, England

When the courts appear to regard stealing Posh Spice's knickers as being of comparable gravity to collecting hundreds of thousands of pornographic images of children, it is hard to see how this force will achieve anything meaningful. Perhaps someone will invent a computer screen that automatically delivers a slap on the wrist when a particularly nasty image is transmitted.
Tanya Smithson, England

Cyber crime is poetic justice for a society in which anything goes. The sanctity of the Internet is incompatible with our decaying social values. How, with our compulsive rejection of morality and sexual propriety, can we subdue a medium in which the possibilities for its abuse for debauched ends are at least theoretically endless? It's quite unreasonable to cry 'foul' because we were not prepared for the outcome of unbridled Western liberty. This initiative can be no more than a face-saver for the Government. More discomfiting for us, its subjects, is the proposal that a cyber force empowered to arbitrarily access our emails means that Mr. Orwell's thought police will have triumphed yet again - well virtually!
Simon Cameron, UK

Its not a question of winning or losing, it's that the police don't even understand the job they're doing. The issues involved with cyber crime go outside the usual geographic boundaries. The only way to ever do anything would be to have an Internet regulatory body operating under the consensus of all countries who connect to the Internet, and enacted at the ISP level. This is a job for politicians, not policemen.
Anne-Lise Pasch, UK

Personally, I think that cracking down on online paedophiles is a waste of time. Once the pictures are on the Internet, the crime has already been committed - the child is already a victim. The police should be devoting their resources to preventing pictures of abuse being taken in the first place. Chasing paedophiles on the Internet is closing the barn door after the horse is long gone.
Guy Hammond, UK

It will never catch the hardcore who send e-mail encrypted so strongly that the military can't break it DooBerry, London

If this bureau works, it will only catch the petty criminals who don't know how to exploit the Internet's weaknesses. It will never catch the hardcore who send e-mail encrypted so strongly that the military can't break it, employ numerous methods to cover their tracks/identity and operate on servers in foreign counties that this unit has no jurisdiction over. These criminals are the ones who need to be caught, as inevitably they are the ones who are responsible for the serious online-crimes such as terrorism and paedophilia.
DooBerry, London, UK

Well, it's about time that we had a force to deal with online paedophiles. But a part of me can't help but think that chasing down 'hackers' is just a witch-hunt. After all, anyone with half a brain can see it's the 'Script Kiddies' causing most online interruptions. REAL hackers are on the same side as the businesses that seek to stop their activities, by drawing attention to security issues within most operating systems and applications. It is up to the software creator to close these holes and the businesses to demand these holes are closed.
Neil Marshall, UK

OK, so we give the police power to intercept our e-mail because "some" people are using the system to organise or commit crime. Better just ban snail mail altogether, then...
DW, UK

Why don't they sort out the problems that really affect the country first? MI5 and MI6 already do this, so why pay for more? Aren't crime levels high enough? If they are prepared to use these 80 officers for this, who is going to replace them on the streets? How can this go ahead when there is a shortage of police officers? IF it works, and it probably won't, then great, well done, but the best people to catch hackers are hackers! Though I don't see why PC Plod should be able to read my e-mails. I send e-mails to one person and one person only. Why should the government be able to say that PC Plod can read them? What about e-mails from other countries? Our police have no power in the States or anywhere else so it's about as much use as chocolate teapot really.
Tom O'D, UK

Cybercops are a bad idea and may give a false sense of security Bill Squire, Netherlands

"Cybercops" are a bad idea and may give a false sense of security. Going one step further, some system administrators may take stricter laws as an excuse not to fix holes in their systems or it may even lessen the incentive of companies like Microsoft to make the needed repairs on their broken systems.
Bill Squire, Netherlands

New laws are not necessary - only goodwill. As long as the police foster international links with other computer crime squads, they will do well. The Internet respects no national boundaries though, so without fostering these links they will fail. Also, people should not underestimate the power of ISPs - they will frequently have all the information necessary to identify hackers and other online criminals. If they decide to cooperate with the police, life could begin to be very difficult for some people.
Tim, UK

I think that a new cybercrime department is a good idea. In my experience, the police prove to be completely unable to deal with anything computer related, usually due to lack of computer knowledge. Obviously, Human Rights safeguards will be important but it's certainly a good start!
Daniel Hardaker, UK

Hackers have the ability to hold the net at ransom, and the huge gaps in the security of cyberspace are open for abuse by those who have the skills. Fortunately, cyber terrorism has not taken off. However, the cyber terrorists lie dormant and it is only their general anarchic individualism that prevents them from co-ordinating their potential for destruction. I don't know if I'd trust any of today's governments with those skills any more than your average 'Love Bug' cyber terrorist. It would be a waste of money. We should simply be less reliant on computers to run our societies.
Benj'min Mossop, UK

It's great news to hear how various crime rings are being broken Harry Knapp, Germany

As with any type of crime, the police will always be behind, no matter how proactive the force tries to be. It's great news to hear how various crime rings are being broken. It would be pessimistic news, however, if the agencies involved were to extrapolate from their own information, an estimate of the number of crime rings still operating or starting up.
Harry Knapp, Germany

I am very disturbed by these government moves. These people spend far more money and time spying on lawful business than they do on catching the real criminals. This government is more interested in control than crime prevention.
Alasdair Binns, Glasgow, Scotland.

Some of your contributors seem to be under the illusion that these criminals are all kids out for a "virtual joyride" doing as much damage as possible. They are professional criminals who rob ordinary people and although the police will never beat them, at least they will be kept at bay and we will all be aware of what's going on.
Rupert Langham, UK

Having successfully had four hackers fined heavily for hacking into my corporate network, I know it's a long drawn out process and to have some sort of police aid would be helpful, but not every bit of the internet can be monitored and if the people want to break the law via the internet or use the internet as a means of crime, then they will do, and one person or eighty sat in a room will not stop them.
AndyB, UK

I believe that a better strategy would be to fund the development of prevention techniques Joe, Canada

I believe that perpetrators of "cyber-crimes", although able to be caught, will never be able to be prosecuted because of privacy laws. Although these crimes can be devastating to some, I believe that to catch these criminals is a violation of privacy laws. I believe that a better strategy would be to fund the development of prevention techniques.
Joe, Canada

Cyber-robbers are inventing innovative techniques to hack computer systems every day. Their style changes so rapidly that by the time the police figure a way to stop one style of hackers, another group of hackers will take over.
Sulove Bothra, UK

There will always be more criminals holding greater resources than the police. Criminals will remain ahead, while the police forever play catch up. However, no need to stop fighting the good fight.
Martyn Hill, USA (ex UK)

Good luck to them, everyone I know has been using encryption for years for their personal e-mails and data transfers. The "keys" used are huge and would take days, if not weeks, to crack. Simple knowledge of computers allows anyone to do this and once voice-calls move over to the IP protocol over the net, DES3 encryption with revolving keys will prevent police from listening to phone calls too. Good luck to them! They can't win.
Andrew, England

It would serve the public best if they were more aware of precautionary measures. It is far better to stop burglars by installing locks than by catching the burglars after the fact. Concerned about hackers? Install security software; hire a consultant to set up firewalls. Concerned about people reading your e-mail? Encrypt it using the many excellent encryption packages available for free over the Net. People can easily protect themselves without calling on the government to protect them; governments are too fond of curtailing people's freedoms in the name of safety.
Huw Bowen, USA (from UK)

The police cannot ultimately win this one Adrian Lee, England

The police cannot ultimately win this one. However, by displaying a resolve to tackle the problem with the implementation of this special unit they may discourage others who might otherwise indulge in cyber crimes from so doing. In this regard it will then be deemed a success. In this respect, although it is a hi-tech response to a hi-tech threat, it is no different to high visibility policing in traditional law enforcement. The threat of arrest prevents the crimes from being committed. It should be supported and properly resourced.
Adrian Lee, England

I agree with a lot of the concerns mentioned - privacy in particular. But the work of the police is to prevent crime, and considering the specialist skills required to investigate "cyber" crime - or at least understand it - it does make sense to have a specialist police department.
Jon, UK

The police don't stand a chance. For a start, they obviously don't understand the mind of the hacker because by announcing that a team of people will be dedicated to trapping hackers they guarantee themselves more work that they could ever handle, even with a team of 8000 people. This announcement is music to the hackers' ears. If they're going to do it, do it, don't start announcing it, just keep it low profile.
Carl, UK

If this bureau works it will only catch the petty criminals who don't know how to exploit the internet's weaknesses. It will never catch the hardcore who send e-mail encrypted so strongly that the military can't break it, employ numerous methods to cover their tracks/ identity and operate on servers in foreign counties that this unit has no jurisdiction over. These criminals are the ones who need to be caught, as inevitably they are the ones who are responsible for the serious online-crimes such as terrorism and paedophilia.
DooBerry, London, UK

The police will never win this war John B, UK The police will never win this war. The criminals are better funded and have a greater incentive to perpetrate their crimes than the police have to stop them. The criminals can bribe an individual police officer with many decades worth of salary, although the police do not have the same powers. The hand-wringing liberals will be up in arms every time the police arrest anyone, and the courts do little beyond slap them on the wrist and let them go. John B, UK I suspect that our e-mails have been 'listened' to for some years already. If not by the police then by other agencies on behalf of governments of UK and USA. The world's governments are so paranoid that I cannot imagine that they haven't been 'listening'! Formvision2001, UK I think we need to be VERY careful. Laws are needed in order to protect people, BUT, we must be sure that those people who police those laws do not go too far. Looking at personal e-mails is just the same as tapping my phone or reading my mail before it even comes through my door. There must be protection against blatant eavesdropping. Who watches the watchers? Matthew Cashmore, UK Once that power is given to the police, it will be hard to take away Paul A. Lux, Florida, USA The only way to truly stop cyber-crime is to broaden the powers of the police to the point that they may intrude without warrant into the lives of private citizens. Does that sound like a good idea to anybody? Not hardly. Once that power is given to the police, it will be hard to take away. Paul A. Lux, Florida, USA As an IT specialist, I can say with total certainty that there will never be a 100% monitored internet. Several initiatives are currently in progress to protect designated areas of the net from snoopers, also guaranteeing complete anonymity. Information technology and censorship do not mix. Rob Harris, UK Cyber Robbers will always be one step ahead of Cyber Cops. Phil Jones, UK When it comes to hacking and fraud, the only way that the police will be able to beat cyber crime is to catch cyber criminals and offer them two options: jail or an unpaid term on special cyber crime units. The police must develop their knowledge of the latest hacking techniques and hacking tools. The best people to educate the police in this respect are reformed hackers or detained hackers. Rahul Mahajan, UK The police and Government have only created a new enemy for the hackers Michael Eyaotu, England No. By creating a new task force, the police and Government have only created a new enemy for the hackers. They will make it their top priority to target these so-called experts and halt any progress they try to make. If they really wanted to stop cybercrime, they should be speaking to businesses to get them to update any measures they use. But this itself will prove useless, until people understand and accept the true hacker mentality to cause havoc wherever possible. Michael Eyaotu, England Judging by successes achieved elsewhere, clearly the police can make headway if sufficient investment is put into resourcing, equipping and training them to do the job. As for their powers, this surely is overt recognition of what MI5 and MI6 have done covertly for many years? Andy Millward, UK With the internet, it is impossible to find out whereabouts a website was created if it ends with .com as it is a international code. So having cyberpolice will be fruitless as by the time the police know it, the crime, i.e. a virus, will damage thousands of systems. Helen, UK Bearing in mind the only war they seem capable of winning at the moment is the war to persecute motorists, I very much doubt it. Whilst I in no way endorse speeding or similar, it has to be seen in perspective. Muggings and other violent crimes seem to fall by the wayside in the headlong rush to convict as many motorists as possible. Mike, England So, 60% of business have been "hacked". I doubt that 60% of business would know what hacking is if it slapped in the face. The majority of companies connect sensitive equipment to public networks, have poor security, terrible internal security procedures and are then amazed when some spotty loser starts looking around. Matt, Amsterdam, Netherlands (ex UK) There is no distinction between a technology and the crimes associated with it. If the technology exists then so do the crimes. People don't invent crimes they invent new technologies. For the police to be ahead of the hi-tec criminals they would need to understand the technologies better than the experts and actually discover new ways to commit crimes themselves. Daren, UK