Interview: Andy Robinson, Police Manager for e-Crime Wales

In August 2008, Andy Robinson, head of the Hi-tech Crime Unit at South Wales Police, was appointed as Police Manager for e-Crime Wales, leading the Police response to business e-crime with his secondment to the Welsh Assembly Government.

His role will include the recruitment and deployment of new staff ensuring each Police force area has the availability of a single point of contact where the business world can seek advice on the issues of e-Crime.

These newly appointed ‘Regional e-Crime Business Officers’ will not only focus their time on giving relevant preventative advice but will seek out intelligence on e-Crime issues to create a proactive approach to the problem. In addition to raising awareness within the business community this new Police unit will also be responsible for provision of training and awareness to colleagues within the Police Service to enable a more efficient and professional response to all e-Crime issues.

One month in to the job, Andy took time out to speak to Chris Williams about his new post.

What motivated you to take on the role of Police Manager?
Having had a keen interest in computing since the late eighties and being involved in the Hi Tech world of Policing the post was seen as a new challenge. I feel that there is a need for raising the awareness to businesses of the need for diligence in the utilisation of IT in the workplace. Due to the ever increasing use of computers by the criminal fraternity there is a need for pro active response in advising business of the current trends and risks.

In addition, I feel that the business community of Wales expects a professional approach to the problems associated with E-Crime and that this new team will soon be in a position to meet that demand.

Do you already have an action plan in place or is there still fact finding to be done?
The current action plan is in place, but it has been identified that it needs to remain dynamic due to the ever changing world of technology. The priorities have been set in line with the e-Crime Wales Action Plan and effectively will remain in line with that Plan unless other demands dictate.

What are the timescales for developing your new unit?
The new unit is being formed as we speak and it is anticipated that all staff will be appointed prior to the commencement of the forthcoming National road shows that are taking place throughout Wales in October.

How will you and your Regional e-Crime Business Officers engage with business?
It is an absolute necessity that the new staff are in a position to meet demand. This will be achieved through daily monitoring of reported incidents and recorded e-Crime. Direct contact will then be made with the victim(s) where appropriate advice and guidance can be given. Presentations will also be given at various Business gatherings throughout the Annual calendar.

The E-Crime Business officer will also act as a SPOC (Single Point of Contact) and a link between the victim and any investigating officer ensuring efficient communication at all times.

In June this year, Chris Corcoran, Chair of the e-Crime Wales Steering Group, expressed concern that there is a “lack of awareness about what constitutes an e-Crime”. With e-Crime constantly evolving how do we teach business to identify and respond to attacks?
Although there is a definition as to what an e-Crime constitutes, very few people have a fuller understanding of the criminal offences directly connected to computer interference. There are many computer related incidents reported to the Police, however not all are actually offences committed under current legislation. As part of their role the new Regional e-Crime Business officers will educate businesses and law enforcement employees as to what constitutes an e-Crime.

In terms of e-crime what, in your opinion, are the main threats currently facing Welsh SMEs?
The most obvious threats are the daily virus and spyware attacks due to companies not ensuring they utilise preventative software within their IT infrastructure. Ensuring consistent back up and archiving of data will safeguard the existence of companies if they are unfortunate to suffer attack. But we should also consider the threat within and all companies should embrace IT security Policies and Acceptable User Agreements with Staff.

With ever increasing use of the Internet, an e-Crime attack can be launched from anywhere in the world. How can e-Crime Wales tackle a global problem?
A global problem cannot be tackled solely by e-Crime Wales, but with the daily gathering of intelligence we will be in a position to share that knowledge with other authorities and prevent the impact of such an attack by alerting companies of the impending danger.

How will you measure the success of your team and would there be support for increased resources if demand led?
This is a difficult question, because raising awareness will undoubtedly cause an increase in reported incidents. However the right preventative advice if heeded will cause a decrease in the amount of actual e-Crime committed. Statistics over the length of the programme will dictate the success of the team.

On the question of increased resources, it is not just the e-Crime Business Officer involved in the e-Crime fight. Additional support is already in place with the involvement of all Hi Tech Crime Units, local and community Police Officers and the IT industry in general.

The future workforce of Wales is currently in the education system. Should they be learning about e-Crime prevention and developing best practice in e-security?
Of course, and it is the intention of both e-Crime Wales and the Police Team to engage with education. Internet safety is already delivered to education by Schools Liaison Officers. However there is also the need to deliver similar ‘Business’ aimed lessons to higher education. After all this is where the future directors of industry can be captured and be given preventative advice before embarking on their careers.

Download the e-Crime Wales Action Plan to see in detail the tasks that will be carried out by e-Crime Wales over the coming years:e-Crime Wales Action Plan

During October the e-Crime Wales team will be presenting at the e-Business for Wales Roadshow. Full details can be found at e-Business for Wales 08

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