[ISN] Cyber police gather at Hyatt

[InfoSec News]

http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/news/local/12512687.htm

By ANDRE BRISCOE
Herald Staff Writer
Aug. 30, 2005

"Cybersleuths" from around the world are gathered in Monterey this
week to share the latest techniques for rooting out high-tech crime,
including such things as cyber-terrorism, eBay fraud, software piracy
and computerized kiddie porn.

The 650 representatives of police and private agencies include
delegates from Great Britain, the Netherlands, Korea and Japan, said
Mark McLaughlin, chairman of the event at the sold-out Hyatt Regency.

McLaughlin and others, including keynote speaker Louis Reigel, said
computerized crime is such a growth industry that law enforcement
officials are compelled to exchange information regularly.

"It's absolutely critical for keeping ahead of criminal activity and
technology," said Reigel, who heads the FBI's high-tech crime
operations.

"It's absolutely essential to develop these relationships with each
other so they can pick up the phone and contact somebody when they
need to."

Also involved is Christopher Painter, deputy chief of the U.S.  
Department of Justice's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property
Division. The event is sponsored by the High Technology Crime
Investigation Association.

During the three-day event, a series of lectures and more than 120
labs will be available to investigators. Topics include such things as
cracking passwords, electronic surveillance countermeasures, Internet
issues for parents, electronic lock picking and identity theft.

"A lot of this changes so fast that every three to six months we have
find new ways to stay on top of it," said Houston police officer Nick
Drehel.

"We're always behind the curve. As law enforcement officers, we're
always reacting to new things they (the criminals) are coming up with.  
We try to stay as close as we can with new technology."

"That's what these conferences are about," said Drehel. "They give us
insight. We learn what works and what doesn't."