A Cybercrimes training course officially opened at the Paul Farquharson Conference Center at the Police Headquarters yesterday.

The course, which was funded by the Canadian government, is designed to partner Interpol with countries from around the world to address the ever pressing issue of cyber crime.

Minister of National Security Dr. Bernard Nottage said that despite being behind other countries in regards to certain advancements, The Bahamas is trending upward and with this increase advancement in technology, the country is being introduced to a new type of criminal and we must know how to combat them.

“We are honored that Interpol choose to have this training course in The Bahamas, which indicates their confidence in us as a center of excellence in technological innovation and while we’re not one of the leading destinations we’re on the right path.

“Cyber crime skills are critical to all police officers due to the emerging global cyber security threat, the rapidly changing face of cyber criminal activity is pushing authorities to tap academic sources to facilitate various training exercises,” Dr. Nottage said.

Alexandru Caciuloiu, head of cybercrime training Interpol global complex for innovation, says that cybercrimes is a problem that many  face globally and that countries must work together to truly address this problem.

“In a globalized world with growing economies cyber crime is an increasing threat, cyber criminals use globalized information to commit offences and with recent spikes in cyber criminal activity it is crucial for police to stay ahead of these persons, ” he said.

“Education training sessions such as this are vital and it is important for us to utilize all the tools at our disposal to defeat this ever increasing threat.”

Commissioner of Police Ellison Greenslade pointed to events as recent as this weekend to show that no country has a comparative advantage, organization such as Interpol are extremely vital.

“Based on news reports we received over the weekend and continue to receive, which demonstrates no country is going to have more advantages to properly execute all the duties required to keep the country safe.

“We are grateful that there is an organization which in essence is the world police that has all the technical expertise to aid in assisting where a country is deficient and help them achieve their potential in these trying times,” Mr. Greenslade said.

Countries participating in the training course include Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, and The Bahamas.