The Month: Cyber-crime reporting

The UK could soon follow a US-style cyber-crime reporting system, following a year-long investigation by a government committee. One idea that is being considered is a website for victims to report online crime directly to the police, along the lines of the US Internet Crime Complaint Center. In theory, such a site would not only provide more accurate statistics on the spread of cyber crime, but might also convince more victims of online fraud to come forward. Committee Chairman Lord Broers said 'One of the problems is that people who, for example, have been the victim of an eBay scam tend to think how stupid they were and that there is no point in going to the police. These are crimes and the police should be equipped to deal with them.'

The House of Lord's Science and Technology select committee is due to present its findings in the summer.