CID sets up cyber crime unit

Jayampathy Jayasinghe

With the increase use of internet cyber crime too is now being recorded in Sri Lanka and the authorities in a bid to curb this are taking several meaningful steps.

Persons especially women who have been black mailed with the intention of extorting ranson money with the use of the Internet could complain to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) following the setting up of a Cyber Unit.

Detection of cyber crime in Sri Lanka was made possible following an Act passed in July 2007.

Computer hacking, unauthorised access to the system and manipulation of data thereafter became offences, a Senior CID official said.

He said the CID will investigate offences relating to national security, national economy and public order, cheating and criminal breach of trust.

Following a Cabinet paper in 2005, the Cyber Crime unit was set up in the Police Department in 2007.

“We have even set up an automated data base for finger prints in the Criminal Record Division. There are over 5,000 finger prints in the CRD. Complaints regarding cyber crimes can be made to the DIG (CID) or to the IGP directly, he said.

The green light for the project was given by President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa.

Information and Communication Technology Authority Chairman Prof. E.W. Epasinghe and Director Legal Advisor Jayantha Fernando were instrumental in providing allocation for the project through the World Bank.

A senior CID officer said that several innocent women in the country have been black mailed by using cyber technology. He cautioned people to be careful when doing business online as several people have been duped in the past.