May 26, 2006 : Macedonia Combats Cyber Crime

📅 May 26, 2006 - According to announcements released this week, four of Macedonia's largest ISPs and the operator of the .mk domain have signed declarations on information safety, the first significant step in combating cyber crime in the Balkan Republic - and a step toward getting the country off the "Internet black list."


The initiative is backed by the United States Agency for International Development, a part of the US mission in Macedonia through its Macedonia Competitiveness Activity. It strives to secure and offer higher quality Internet services, as well as protect customers from global Internet security threats.

"This recent ISP declaration is an important step in combating fraud, crime and other Internet-based illegal activity," says Brian Cute, VP of public policy for infrastructure service provider VeriSign (verisign.com). "Macedonia and USAID's efforts should serve as an example to other countries looking to maximize participation in the Internet community."

VeriSign's Global Security Consulting team was engaged by USAID/MCA to gather information and conduct awareness workshops for Macedonian ISPs, financial insitutions, Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Ministry of Justice. It has since identified multiple threats including bots and phishing.