From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
MONTGOMERY – Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall announced today the establishment of a cybercrime lab in his office. He was joined by the Secret Service, the FBI, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations, the Alabama Fusion Center and the Alabama Office of Prosecution Services.
Marshall said that the lab will assist “all level of law enforcement in the state” with cyber-related crimes.
“Today, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, with the help of our federal, state and local partners, officially launch the Cybercrime Lab,” he said. “One of my priorities as Attorney General is to expand the capability of this office to combat the growing threat of cybercrime.
For law enforcement, investigating cybercrime and accessing digital evidence present real challenges. But these hurdles can be overcome when agencies work together to combine expertise and training.”
Marshall also announced that his office has established a new web link for Alabama’s law enforcement groups and victims of credit card scams to report debit/credit card skimming devices.
This was established by the Alabama Focus Group on Skimming, which is comprised of the Secret Service, Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries, Alabama Department of Transportation, Alabama Fusion Center, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, Alabama Petroleum Equipment Contractors Association, the Petroleum & Convenience Marketers of Alabama and the attorney general’s office.
The announcement was made with Louis V. Franklin Sr., who is the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama. He said that cybercrime is a growing problem.
“Cybercrime is ever increasing and touches most people in some form,” said “As the level of cybercrime becomes more sophisticated, it is important that our investigative techniques are expansive enough to combat these criminals. This cybercrime lab will give us extra tools in our investigative toolbox to identify and prosecute those cyber offenders.”