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Posted on October 10th, 2012 in Internet Safety by Simply Security | Be the first to comment | Tags: Internet Safety

Trend Micro will join security experts and law enforcement agencies from around the world to help curb the rise and spread of cybercrime.

Organizations across industries, sectors and borders are growing increasingly aware that cybersecurity is a shared burden – and a goal that can only be achieved through intelligent collaboration. Europol, the European Union's criminal intelligence agency, has now placed this notion at the heart of a new initiative being billed as one of the largest international cybercrime consultations to date.

Project 2020 will combine the forces of Europol, the continent's lead curator of cybercriminal trend data, with International Cyber Security Protection Alliance (ICSPA) member companies and several industry and professional organizations. Delegates will work to provide government officials, law enforcement agents and business leaders with actionable insights that can help them address emerging threats and regain control of the Internet security landscape.

Coordinators specifically pointed to the rapid maturation and commercialization of cybercriminal tactics observed during the past two years. From the common consumer to government executives, none have been immune to this trend. The proliferation of data created and shared across digital channels has provided cybercriminals with ample ammunition to craft compelling traps to perpetrate credit card fraud and identity theft. At a higher level, state-sponsored cyberattacks and exploitation of critical infrastructure vulnerabilities have added a concerning new dynamic to proceedings.

According to U.S. Government Accountability Office, federal departments observed a 680 percent increase in the cyberattacks they faced between 2005 and 2011. Additionally, a report from the Office of the National Counter Intelligence Executive suggested that as much as $400 billion in American research and development funding has been compromised as a result of corporate and government intrusions led by foreign hackers.

"During the past few years, increasingly sophisticated and highly targeted cyberattacks have resulted in significant losses – not only financial data but also, potentially even more worryingly, or intellectual property in defense and aerospace, oil and petrochemicals, financial services, manufacturing and pharmaceuticals," ICSPA chief executive John Lyons stated. "This project will, for the first time, bring together experts globally with a remit to identify and fix weaknesses in our systems before they come to market."

Europol experts will be joined by ICSPA member organizations, including data security specialist Trend Micro, payment services leader Visa Europe and fraud prevention firm Transactis, among others. These companies will also draw on the expertise of like-minded collaborators from the International Information System Security Certification Consortium and the International Association of Public Prosecutors.

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