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The UK Will Police the Dark Web With a New Task Force (vice.com)

Posted by samzenpus on from the we're-going-to-need-more-eye-bleach dept.

An anonymous reader writes with news that the UK’s Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), and its top police counterpart, the National Crime Agency have formed a new unit to take on online crime. Motherboard reports: "'An NCA and GCHQ co-located Joint Operations Cell (JOC) opens officially today,' an NCA press release published Friday reads. 'The unit brings together officers from the two agencies to focus initially on tackling online child sexual exploitation.' This unit has been in the works for some time. Back at the end of 2014, UK Prime Minister David Cameron announced the plan for its formation at We Protect Children Online Global Summit. At the time, he said that 'The so-called "dark-net" is increasingly used by paedophiles to view sickening images. I want them to hear loud and clear: we are shining a light on the web's darkest corners; if you are thinking of offending, there will be nowhere for you to hide.' At the summit, it was said that GCHQ's technical skills would be its contribution to the unit. But the JOC won't just focus on child pornography cases. GCHQ Director Robert Hannigan said in the recent release that, on top of child exploitation, 'The Joint Operations Cell will increase our ability to identify and stop serious criminals."

11 of 56 comments (clear)

  1. How... progressive. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    They've been watching too much CSI.

    Pure coincidence that they'll mostly end up 'catching' dissidents and whistleblowers

    1. Re: How... progressive. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      They're going to wish they brought a bigger fleshlight. ......

    2. Re: How... progressive. by Dr_Barnowl · · Score: 2

      Or at least, a different design of fleshlight.

    3. Re:How... progressive. by Maritz · · Score: 2

      Don't knock them, they've got the know how. They're going to build a GUI in Visual Basic and trace your IP address.

      --
      I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.
    4. Re:How... progressive. by AmiMoJo · · Score: 3, Interesting

      They love all this CSI Cyber shit because paedophiles are the biggest boogeymen after terrorists. Maybe even before terrorists. It also makes for great headlines about how 5 million illegal images were found on some idiots computer, which seems like it was a massive bust but actually just one guy downloading dodgy torrents in isolation from his flat in Newcastle.

      Easy glory for the police, which diverts attention away from their numerous fuck-ups and persecution of people they don't like, and helps them justify even greater powers in the future.

      Also, as you say, they get some cool new hardware that can be turned on anyone that bothers them when necessary.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    5. Re:How... progressive. by Applehu+Akbar · · Score: 2

      "They love all this CSI Cyber shit because paedophiles are the biggest boogeymen after terrorists."

      Police could kill off most of the pedophile problem by going after cultural environments that promote such practices, but that would be politically incorrect. So they want the legal system warped so they can spy on every individual's computer, in hopes of catching individual offenders. So long, Magna Carta.

  2. Fucking liars by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why weren't they thinking of the children when Thatcher’s government covered up a VIP pedophile ring

    1. Re:Fucking liars by Bahamut_Omega · · Score: 2

      I'll just watch the GCHQ wind up finding itself under the boot heel of Anonymous over time.

      I wonder how long it will be until the "Darknet" operations will have turned Mr. Cameron into the same kind of petrified cowards that got turfed in both Canada and Australia. Perhaps it's time for Fawkes to rise again and perhaps start exposing a number of Cameron's corporate friends for their high treason. Otherwise, I'm sure many members in law enforcement would find themselves outed quite nicely.

  3. UK by Sibko · · Score: 4, Informative

    Funny how the UK police have enough time and resources to create entire new departments for the express purpose of policing the internet - ostensibly to protect the children - and yet they've got such a backlog on actual child abuse investigations that they can't get around to them for years.

    1. Re:UK by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Pedophile politicians want to shift the focus away from themselves!

  4. Re: Rotherham by cyber-vandal · · Score: 2

    They're all in prison now. Unlike Jimmy Savile who got away with it for 50 fucking years.