Clause in Fraud Bill aims to criminalise deceiving a machine
The financial services industry has welcomed the government’s attempt to close a legal loophole that could allow criminals to get away with chip-and-PIN and cash machine fraud.
Attorney General Lord Goldsmith has added a clause to the Fraud Bill to make deceiving a computer a criminal offence.
Lord Goldsmith says there is uncertainty about prosecuting fraudsters for deception if they use a stolen PIN at a cash machine or on a retailer’s chip-and-PIN device, on the grounds that you cannot deceive a machine.
Sales assistants play no active role in many chip-and-PIN transactions and therefore are not being deceived in the same way as they are when signatures are forged, he says.
‘We do not want law enforcers to face unreasonable technical choices in making charges and we consider the Bill should make it clear that a false representation should be an offence whether made to a machine or person,’ said Lord Goldsmith.
Peter Sommer, senior research fellow at the London School of Economics, says the proposed legal changes are long overdue.
‘It will make a lot of computer related frauds easier to challenge,’ he said. ‘It is not that people have been getting away with crimes, but the means of legally challenging them have been convoluted.’
High-street bank Lloyds TSB welcomes Lord Goldsmith’s amendment and says it could make it easier to tackle fraud.
‘While we are doing all we can to ensure our systems are safe and our customers are protected, we welcome any moves designed to tighten the legal framework and deal more effectively with online crime,’ said a spokeswoman for Lloyds TSB.
Banking body Apacs says the changes are a positive move.
‘By removing the loophole it ensures there are further deterrents to criminals. This is especially important for the introduction of chip-and-PIN, as there is now less cashier interaction at the point-of-sale,’ said Apacs.
If it passes into law, the Fraud Bill will also help prosecutors deal more effectively with internet crimes, such as phishing. Fraudsters who send emails or create sites claiming to be from financial firms could face up to 10 years in prison (Computing, 2 June).
The financial services industry has welcomed the government’s attempt to close a legal loophole that could allow criminals to get away with chip-and-PIN and cash machine fraud.
Attorney General Lord Goldsmith has added a clause to the Fraud Bill to make deceiving a computer a criminal offence.
Lord Goldsmith says there is uncertainty about prosecuting fraudsters for deception if they use a stolen PIN at a cash machine or on a retailer’s chip-and-PIN device, on the grounds that you cannot deceive a machine.
Sales assistants play no active role in many chip-and-PIN transactions and therefore are not being deceived in the same way as they are when signatures are forged, he says.
‘We do not want law enforcers to face unreasonable technical choices in making charges and we consider the Bill should make it clear that a false representation should be an offence whether made to a machine or person,’ said Lord Goldsmith.
Peter Sommer, senior research fellow at the London School of Economics, says the proposed legal changes are long overdue.
‘It will make a lot of computer related frauds easier to challenge,’ he said. ‘It is not that people have been getting away with crimes, but the means of legally challenging them have been convoluted.’
High-street bank Lloyds TSB welcomes Lord Goldsmith’s amendment and says it could make it easier to tackle fraud.
‘While we are doing all we can to ensure our systems are safe and our customers are protected, we welcome any moves designed to tighten the legal framework and deal more effectively with online crime,’ said a spokeswoman for Lloyds TSB.
Banking body Apacs says the changes are a positive move.
‘By removing the loophole it ensures there are further deterrents to criminals. This is especially important for the introduction of chip-and-PIN, as there is now less cashier interaction at the point-of-sale,’ said Apacs.
If it passes into law, the Fraud Bill will also help prosecutors deal more effectively with internet crimes, such as phishing. Fraudsters who send emails or create sites claiming to be from financial firms could face up to 10 years in prison (Computing, 2 June).
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