The President of the German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), Holger Münch, has raised alarms regarding an increasing threat from foreign cyberattacks. Speaking to the Funke media group’s Saturday editions, Münch noted a significant rise in cybercrime attacks originating from abroad. He explained that criminal elements are becoming increasingly professional at scams such as “phishing” by utilizing modern software and artificial intelligence.
According to the BKA chief, Germany currently ranks as the fourth most targeted country for online fraud. While the top three spots are held by English-speaking nations, the AI has effectively eliminated the language barrier for Germany. Münch stated that attackers can now simply translate their fraudulent messages into German using software.
In this connection, Münch demanded that the BKA be granted greater powers. He argued that the agency needs a legal basis to be able to directly interact with the servers of criminal groups for threat mitigation. He compared this necessity to the situation concerning terrorism, asserting that the cyber threat landscape can only be adequately countered through such a federal regulation.
Furthermore, he mentioned that one federal state is currently testing how quickly authorities can block the phone numbers or websites used by criminals, adding that this is how they can undermine the fraudsters’ business model.
Finally, the BKA President suggested that the police force must improve the automation and centralization of exchanging data about offenders. These data points must eventually be fed into a common integrated database, irrespective of the severity of the crime. The top criminal official added that if police officers only see their individual case locally, they will fail to recognize entire criminal networks.
