Eyewitness News published an article on July 28, 2020, about CARICOM: Cyber-crime on the rise during the pandemic.
Cybercrime increases rapidly along with new technological norm forced on by the Covid-19 pandemic. CARICOM states meet in a hope to come up with new measures to safeguard against a more hostile technological space.
Key points:
- Officers in Nassau, Bahamas have recorded a new high of 118 reported cyber-crime incidents. With the coronavirus pandemic propelling all organization towards a more online-based environment, this has resulted in a 36 per cent increase in hacking and extortion.
- As the cyber issue spans the region and takes more forms, a CARICOM presentation was. Multiple island nations expressed their concerns regarding both cybersecurity risks and the need for increased laws and frameworks.
- UN Resident Coordinator for Trinidad and Tobago Marina Walter outlined the unease form the lack of comprehensive cyber-security policies and the increased level of information fraud-related attacks on individuals and organization. She advised states to be more aggressive in how they combat these issues.
- Meanwhile, Commissioner of Police Paul Rolle in stated that his policing plan for 2020 has included partnering with the Asset Recovery Inter-Agency Network for the Caribbean (ARIN-CARIB). They aim to reduce financial and commercial crimes through strengthening the Financial Crime Investigations Division.
- With the Federal Bureau of Investigation reporting a 300 per cent increase in crime, Commissioner Rolle is committed to providing standardized financial investigation training and employing more forensic accountants and analysts.
- Eyewitness News has received numerous reports of persons being caught in lottery scams via text and WhatsApp messages. An organization such as the World Health Organization and Department of Health have become a prime target for cyber-attacks.
Reference: ewnews.com
Contributed by: Contributed by Kyle Sterling from Jamaica. Kyle is a member of our Caribbean Cyber Support Team (CCST) initiative on Discord. CCST is a collaborative group on the Discord platform for Caribbean people interested in IT, from beginners to experts.
If you’re from the Caribbean, learn more and join the group by visiting caribbeancst.org.