California addresses security fears with new eCrime Unit

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

To address the need for greater security to defend against cybercriminals, California Attorney General Kamala Harris recently announced the formation of a new statewide eCrime Unit.

According to Harris, people using smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices are now prime targets in the changing security landscape.

"I am creating the eCrime Unit so that California can be a leader in using innovative law enforcement techniques to target these criminals," said Harris. "The eCrime Unit will be comprised of investigators and prosecutors charged with working across jurisdictions and leading task forces to protect California consumers and businesses."

The state announcement revealed California was cited as having 10 of the top 25 metropolitan areas for identity theft in 2010, which the new unit hopes to address.

Also, California businesses, consumers and government agencies lose millions of dollars annually due to the continued cyberattacks, the report stated.

With or without public sector assistance, companies worldwide are expected to up their security spending to avoid becoming the victims of cybercriminals. According to research firm Gartner, this sector is projected to grow from $35.1 billion this year to more than $49 billion in 2015.