Microsoft Cybercrime Center to Tackle Internet Fraud in Africa

Written by Makula Dunbar

Nov 20, 2013

Microsoft Corp. on Thursday announced the opening of the Microsoft Cybercrime Center, a center of excellence for advancing the global fight against cybercrime on its Redmond, Wash., campus in the United States.

The Cybercrime Center combines Microsoft’s legal and technical expertise as well as cutting-edge tools and technology with cross-industry expertise, marking a new era in effectively fighting crime on the Internet.

Each year, cybercrime takes a personal and financial toll on millions of consumers around the globe.

In Africa the number of cybercrime cases have been steadily increasing, especially those targeting financial institutions. In Nigeria for example, The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) reported that banks lost N20 billion in 2012 through internet fraud.

The Cybercrime Center will tackle online crimes, including those associated with malware, botnets, intellectual property (IP) theft and technology-facilitated child exploitation. The work done at the Cybercrime Center will help ensure that people worldwide can use their computing devices and services with confidence.

“The Microsoft Cybercrime Center is where our experts come together with customers and partners to focus on one thing: keeping people safe online,” said David Finn, associate general counsel of the Microsoft Digital Crimes Unit. “By combining sophisticated tools and technology with the right skills and new perspectives, we can make the Internet safer for everyone.”

The Cybercrime Center’s international reach will be extended by 12 satellite offices or regional labs around the world in Beijing, Berlin, Bogota, Brussels, Dublin, Edinboro (U.S.), Gurgaon (India), Hong Kong, Munich, Singapore, Sydney, and Washington, D.C. These locations will better enable Microsoft to identify and analyze malware and IP crimes, and share cybercrime fighting best practices with customers and industry partners on a global scale.