OECD wants pensioners to be taught Internet security

Stuart Corner
Thursday, 20 April 2006 19:22

IT Industry - Strategy

The inclusion of lessons on spam and Internet security in computer courses in schools and for senior citizens is just one of a series of wide ranging recommendations made by the OECD in a Anti-Spam Toolkit designed to alleviate the global spam problem.
The OECD has urged governments and industry to adopt a more co-ordinated approach to battling spam, saying it is much more than a mere mailbox-clogging nuisance. "Spam is dangerous and costly for business and consumers. It disrupts networks, cuts productivity, spreads viruses and is increasingly used by criminals who steal passwords to access confidential information and often bank accounts."

According to the OECD, there is no single solution but if governments and the private sector "act fast on a number of fronts...establish clear national anti-spam policies and give enforcement authorities more power and resource," they can do much to mitigate the problem. "Co-ordination and co-operation between public and private sectors are critical," the OECD says.

The OECD has launched an Anti-Spam Toolkit, available online at www.oecd-antispam.org, that "gives policymakers a comprehensive package of concrete regulatory approaches, technical solutions, and industry initiatives to fight spam".

The Toolkit also includes a guide to best practices for Internet service providers and other network operators, and for email marketing. These were produced by the Business and Industry Advisory Committee (BIAC), the business advisory group to the OECD, in co-operation with the Messaging Anti-Abuse Working Group (MAAWG), an organisation of Internet service providers.

According to the OECD, "this is the first effort by the private sector to develop a series of common best practices at the international level". And it notes that international co-operation will be key to solving the spam problem. "Spam moves between countries and investigators have to follow the flow across borders to track spammers".

To address this, OECD governments have approved a "Recommendation on Cross-Border Co-operation in the Enforcement of Laws against Spam", urging countries to ensure that their laws enable enforcement authorities to share information with other countries quickly and effectively. It also calls on each country to "establish a single national contact point to facilitate international cooperation".