The European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) of the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) has joined hands with the Cyber Defence Alliance (CDA) to address cyber threats faced by the banking and financial sector.
Image: Europol and CDA have agreed to step up cooperation to address cyber threats faced by banking and financial sector. Photo: courtesy of Europol.
Both the parties have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), under which they aim to defend against cyber threats by organizing activities, exchanging expertise like best practice, statistical data, technical information or trends associated with cybercrime and working together with each other when executing projects.
The Cyber Defence Alliance is a consortium featuring UK-based banks and law enforcement agencies which collaborate with each other in sharing intelligence and fighting against hackers and fraudsters.
Europol EC3 head Steven Wilson said: “The Cyber Defence Alliance is a valuable partner for the EC3 and the signing of this MoU illustrates the logical next step in our mission to jointly tackle the threat of cybercrime.
“CDA does important work in facilitating the sharing of information on cybersecurity incidents and is thus an essential partner in securing the global digital space. I look forward to our upcoming cooperation and joint projects.”
EC3 was established by Europol in 2013 to bolster the law enforcement response to cybercrime in the European Union. The organization’s objective is to help protect European citizens, businesses and governments from online crime.
EC3 is said to have played a significant role in the fight against cyber threats and cybercrime through its involvement in several high-profile operations and several on-the-spot operational-support deployments.
CDA CEO Maria Vello said: “The CDA is extremely proud to have signed the MoU with EC3. For us, EC3 is an invaluable strategic partner and critical to our quest to fight cybercrime and threats collectively and collaboratively across Europe and globally.
“EC3 adds a whole new dimension to the CDA to help enable our mission and to take a proactive approach to tackling cybercrime at all levels of this miscreant ecosystem of shared criminal services. Through our cooperative efforts we will be able to help ensure a safer cyber future.”