IT Crime in Russia Triples Every Year

The number of crimes in the information technology industry in Russia is increasing by 3-3.5 times each other. This was announced today at a briefing by Konstantin Machabeli, the deputy head of the Interior Ministry's Central Department. According to Machabeli's figures, 6,251 crimes in the IT sector were registered in 2002, including 3,782 crimes linked with illegal access to information held on computers.

According to Sergei Khvoevsky, a senior CID officer, over the last few years the volume of international electronic trade has steadily increased. The volume of losses inflicted by swindlers on individuals and organisations has also been growing. In 1999 electronic payments in Russia were worth only USD 1 million, but in 2000 they had already grown to USD 40 million. Khvoevsky said that in 2002 the total volume of losses inflicted by criminals on electronic payment systems was USD 6 billion.