Vienna, 3 December (UNODC) - The NHN Corporation of the Republic of Korea has made a donation of $500,000 to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime to help establish a Virtual Forum against Cyber-crime. This strengthens the Office's work in this area and is the first time that a private company has granted money to UNODC.
Signing two agreements today with NHN Senior Vice President Mr. Sirgoo Lee and Dr. Sang-ki Park, President of the Korean Institute of Criminal Justice Policy, UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa lauded the unprecedented partnership between the private sector and the United Nations in the field of crime control. Thanking them for the generous donation, Mr. Costa said "This initiative will fight crime in cyber-space, and help bring to justice people who hide behind the screen of anonymity".
Located on a "digital platform" the Forum will help law enforcement bodies, criminal justice officials and researchers from developing countries gain access to training courses and technical advice on how to prevent and investigate cyber-crime. The Forum will also act as a communication centre for cybercrime experts. Course and training materials have been developed and training will be piloted in Viet Nam and launched in early 2008.
Mr. Costa assured Dr. Park and Mr. Lee of his continued support in combating this scourge, adding that organized crime groups were increasingly behind the use of the Internet for criminal activities like child exploitation, identity-related crime and money laundering.
The NHN Corporation is an internet content provider and a leader in online services in Asia. It has been providing technical and advisory services for the Forum since its inception in 2006.
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For further information, please contact:
Walter Kemp
Communications Officer
Telephone +43 1 26060 5629
Mobile +43 699 1459 5629
E-mail: walter.kemp@unodc.org
