'Collaboration is key' to tackling fraud, NYPD detective says
A New York city chief of detectives has said that resources and collaboration with other forces are necessary for combating cyber threats and fraud.
Dermot Shea, who is in Ireland for the International Fraud Prevention conference in Dublin, told RTE radio’s Morning Ireland that the landscape of law enforcement is changing and it is a challenge to stay ahead of criminals.
“Technology is changing so rapidly. It crosses borders, this is not a law enforcement problem alone.”
Events such as conferences are important opportunities for police forces to share information. “Collaboration is key.”
Mr Shea said that in New York the level of fraud had risen in the past five to 10 years from 20% to 40% of major crimes. “Dealing with it is taking up a growing amount of time.”
He pointed out that laws have not kept up with technology. “It is a perpetual game of cat and mouse.”
Resources are key, he added. “No police chief will ever say that they have enough resources. We added 200 detectives to tackle cybercrime. We are fortunate".
New York city’s police department also hired 100 analysts, he said. These are non-uniformed members of the force. “They are another tool in our tool box in the fight against fraud. Their key focus is coding.”
Trading information at conferences is important, said Mr Shea. “Criminals purposefully seek to exploit weaknesses in law enforcement, they will travel the world.”
