AG's Office Hosts Cyber Crime Training for Law Enforcement Across the State

LEOMINSTER - Yesterday, more than 130 law enforcement officers from across the state attended the AG's Cyber Crime Initiative Quarterly Meeting held at the Four Points Sheraton in Leominster. The full-day training, attended by police officers, prosecutors and computer forensic investigators, included a General Session and a Forensic Working Group that focused on mobile technologies.

"A priority of my office is to keep law enforcement up to speed on the constantly changing world of technology," said Attorney General Coakley. "Trainings such as the one held yesterday are essential in giving law enforcement the necessary skills to effectively detect, analyze and prosecute crimes that have a cyber component, which is the case for almost all crimes in the 21 ^st century."

During the General Session, Amber Schroader, CEO of Paraben Corporation, provided a presentation titled "Mobile Devices: Seizure through Analysis, What You Really Need to Know." Amber Schroader specializes in wireless forensics and mobile technologies. Julie Ross, Assistant Attorney General in the AG's Cyber Crime Division, provided a detailed legal update on current case decisions that will have an impact on investigations. David Papargiris, Director of the Computer Forensics Lab at the AG's Office and Christopher Kelly, the Managing Attorney of the AG's Cyber Crime Division, highlighted new technologies and tips that law enforcement need to be aware of. The Forensic Working Group featured a presentation from Amber Schroader, titled "Latest Forensic Trends in Mobile Devices," which discussed forensic trends related to smart phones and similar devices, which are particularly of interest to law enforcement due to encryption and password restrictions.

Since taking office in January 2007, Attorney General Coakley has made prevention and prosecution of cyber crime a priority of her administration. Shortly after taking office, Attorney General Coakley established a dedicated Cyber Crime Division within the office's Criminal Bureau to lead the Attorney General's Cyber Crime Initiative. In late 2007, Attorney General Coakley unveiled "The Massachusetts Strategic Plan for Cyber Crime," designed to help the Commonwealth develop a statewide capacity to prevent, investigate, and prosecute crimes with a cyber component. The plan calls for law enforcement training, enhanced information sharing, the development of common operating procedures and standards, funding for cyber crime programs, and amending current law as it pertains to cyber crime.

On September 15, 2009, Attorney General Coakley announced the opening of the new state-of-the-art Computer Forensics Lab in Boston, which is part of the Cyber Crime Initiative and is designed to develop a statewide capacity to deal with cyber crime and more efficiently process digital evidence that is present in virtually every investigation. Through the Cyber Crime Initiative, the Attorney General's Office has provided cyber training for more than 11,000 state and local law enforcement personnel from across the Commonwealth. The plan is available from the Attorney General's website at www.mass.gov/ago.

Representatives of the following agencies and police departments attended yesterday's training:

Abington Police Department

Acton Police Department

Ashland Police Department

Barnstable Sheriff's Department

Bentley University Police Department

Boston Police Department

Boston University Police

Boxborough Police Department

Bridgewater Police Department

Brockton Police Department

Cambridge Police Department

Canton Police Department

Chelsea Police Department

Chicopee Police Department

Criminal Bureau / Attorney General's Office

Dedham Police Department/ Metro LEC Computer Crime Unit

Dennis Police Department

Department of Correction

DHS, ICE- Homeland Security Investigations

Douglas Police Department

Dover Police Department

East Bridgewater Police Department

Easton Police Department

Essex State Police Detective Unit

Fall River Police Department

FBI

Fitchburg Police Department

Fitchburg State University Police

Foxborough Police Department

Framingham State University Police Department

Harvard University Police Department

Holy Cross Public Safety

Hudson Police Department

Hull Police Department

Leominster Police Department

Lexington Police Department

Marblehead Police Department

Marlborough Police Department

Massachusetts Attorney General's Office

Massachusetts Office of the Inspector General

Massachusetts Probation Service

Massachusetts State Police

Massachusetts State Police - DEMS

Massachusetts State Police - Franklin/Hampshire

Massachusetts State Police - Plymouth County District Attorney's Office

Massachusetts State Police - Middlesex District Attorney's Office

Massachusetts State Police - Hampden

Massachusetts State Police - ICAC

Massasoit Police Department

Montague Police Department

Nahant Police Department

NESPIN

Norfolk District Attorney's Office

North Attleboro Police Department

Northbridge Police Department

Northwestern District Attorney's Office

Norwell Police Department

Norwood Police Department

Phillipston Police Department

Plymouth County Sheriff's Department

Raynham Police Department

Shrewsbury Police Department

Springfield Police Department

Stow Police Department

Sudbury Police Department

Suffolk County District Attorney's Office

Sutton Police Department

Taunton Police Department

Templeton Police Department

U.S. Secret Service

UMass Lowell Police Department

USDOL / OLMS

Walpole Police Department

Waltham Police Department

Wellesley Police Department

Westwood Police Department

Whitman Police Department

Williamsburg Police Department

Worcester Police Department

Worcester State University Campus Police

Worcester Polytechnic Institute/Information Security

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