Zimbabwe police join cyber warfare

The Computer society of Zimbabwe has taken lead in finding solutions to our cyber crime ravaged society but this time, they have asked the Criminal Investigation Department (C.I.D) Serious Fraud's input to find lasting solutions to this new phenomenon.

The Zimbabwean criminal codification act does not, at any point mention computer aided crimes or cyber criminology directly as a crime but this does not mean that cyber criminology is exempted. Detective Assistant Inspector Tom Muleya and Superintendent Moyo Ndabezihle took turns on stage to explain how miscellaneous cyber activity can still be criminalized using our ancient Dutch law at an event held at Jameson Hotel.

While today there is so much online activity masked in anonymity and plasticity, tracing online criminals can be impossible or arduous. Cyber criminals are mastering new ways to stay undetected in this volatile industry and for our police force to be tasked with such responsibility, it's really taking them for an acidic test. Computer criminals are the new wave of threat which without proper tools are impossible to trace let alone dictate.

Hampered by lack of resources and proper expertise to counteract activities, Superintendent Muleya bemoaned such predicaments and vowed the force will still soldier on to withstand In such circumstances.

He highlighted how borderlessness and lack of public outcry and has made it easy for the criminals while difficult for the force to trace. Issues of jurisdiction will always come as a crime committed in Zimbabwe may not be a crime in Switzerland. Extradition complexities may also inhibit the prosecution of such offenders.

What was so disheartening was learning "the dream of an African man's" story from the Superintendent. He took time to articulate how they, as police force keep dreaming that one day they will be able to complete the construction the Zimbabwean crime Laboratory, as an international standard prerequisite. International Police (InterPol) demands that all member states should have such infrastructures but unfortunately for Zimbabwe, our government will still have other pressing prioritizes to consider.

According to Superintendent Muleya the total budget needed is a mere $180 000, and they are only waiting on hope to see this dream come true. The corporate world should find sense to partner and fund such projects which will help our forces in delivering standard services. It will not only be retrogressive but irresponsible for all players to sit back while such projects crumble.

Although we officially do not have cyber criminology statues, Superintended easily explained how they is no new criminology under the sun. For computer hackers they could be charged for unlawfully tampering or altering someone 's data using a computer. For the common DDOS attacks, you can be charged by depriving or infringing services to others via use of a computer. The same of sending viruses is malicious damage to someone's property via computer so even still the old system is still being used in modern day criminology.

Currently a new wave of cyber criminology has hit the Zimbabwean car importers industry where prospective buyers are hoodwinked into buying cheap online cars via local print and online adverts and upon transferring the funds into these international scammers, the unsuspecting Zimbabweans will get their hard earned currency swindled.

Above all these challenges Detective Assistant Inspector Tom Muleya, boasted of a team of Officers who have undergone some studies in Cyber crime and fraud management to thwart these computer assisted and focused crimes.