On Monday (16th November 2009) I chaired the Get Safe Online Summit which took place in central London. The Summit is one of the cornerstones of Get Safe Online Week, and this year attracted over 120 key partners and stakeholders from across the public, private and voluntary sectors.
The keynote was given by the Rt. Hon. Angela Smith, Minister of State for the Cabinet Office. The Minister commented: “The internet can be a great tool to help people find work during the global economic downturn, but with criminals using increasingly sophisticated methods to take advantage of jobseekers, we need to maintain vigilance. Scams such as the recruitment of Money Mules can end up landing you in trouble with the law, which is why we’re asking all internet users to take some time out of their week to visit the Get Safe Online website and make sure they are up-to-date with the latest threats and advice.”
The agenda continued with Paul Evans, director intervention at SOCA, discussing strategies for reducing harm in the virtual world and the role that consumer education plays in law enforcement efforts.
Nancy Johnston, technology development manager at Age Concern and Help the Aged, discussed the broader challenges within the context of digital inclusion issues for silver surfers – highlighting the importance of simple interfaces, avoiding jargon, accessibility and lifelong learning.
Andy Auld, intelligence manager for SOCA’s e-Crime unit, highlighted a number of key threats including money mule scams, which have proliferated in line with growth in online banking fraud (recently published figures from Financial Fraud Action UK show that, in the first six months of this year, UK online banking fraud losses amounted to £39 million, an increase of 55% on the previous year).
The Summit also marked the launch and publication of the 2009 Get Safe Online Report, UK Internet Security: State of the Nation, which examines consumer trends and experience of online crime. Presented by Garreth Griffith, head of UK risk management at PayPal and a director of GetSafeOnline.org, the key findings of the Report can be found on the Get Safe Online Website
