Representatives from European banks have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Monday with Europol in an effort to enhance cooperation in the fight against cybercrime.
The agreement between the European Banking Federation (EBF) and the European Cybercrime Center (EC3) at Europol enables the exchange of data and expertise between the two organizations. On one hand, the data provided by Europol helps financial institutions protect themselves against emerging threats. On the other hand, law enforcement agencies are more capable of investigating cybercrimes and prosecuting perpetrators if they are kept up to date on new malware and novel payment fraud methods, Europol said.
The partnership is expected to have positive results since the EBF provides a link between the major financial institutions, while Europol connects the cyber units of police forces from European Union member states.
The security measures deployed these days by many European financial institutions make it significantly more difficult to commit payment card fraud. However, cybercrime groups are not giving up, a fact demonstrated by the recent investigations and prosecutions.
“Today marks an important day for both EU law enforcement and the banking industry. We have agreed to intensify mutual cooperation, respecting relevant national legislation, to jointly enhance our ability to prevent, prosecute and disrupt cybercrime against the financial sector,” commented Troels Oerting, head of the EC3. “This is more than a ceremonial gesture – this is the establishment of a trusted relationship aimed at achieving tangible results that will make life more difficult for criminals and life easier for the banking sector and all of us who use these important services.”
“Our members already cooperate intensely with their own, national police authorities in order to fight with financial cybercrime,” said Wim Mijs, chief executive of the EBF. “Our partnership with Europol now adds a European dimension to this important work. International cooperation between banks and law enforcement bodies is essential because it is clear that criminals know no borders.”
Earlier this month, Europol announced the launch of a new cybercrime taskforce led by Andy Archibald, deputy director of the National Cyber Crime Unit at the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA). This summer, Europol also signed an agreement with the European Union Agency for Network and Information Security (ENISA) as part of efforts to combat cybercrime.