Lords renew calls for tighter internet security

Lord Broers: some key recommendations have either been ignored or are awaiting action

The House of Lords will question the government on the subject of internet security in a debate on Friday.

Downing Street is expected to come under renewed pressure to adopt more of the Lords' key recommendations laid out in the August 2007 Personal Internet Security report.

"Some of our recommendations, such as the establishment of a specialist e-crime police unit, are now being acted on by government," said Lord Broers, chairman of the inquiry, in a statement.

"But others, such as software developers' liability for damage caused by security flaws, and enabling people to report online fraud directly to the police rather than their bank, have either been ignored or are awaiting action. "

The August report highlighted the dangers of online fraud, identify theft, phishing, bogus shopping websites and the risks associated with children's use of the internet.

One suggestion was that the government should safeguard the public's use of the internet by passing legislation which would ensure that banks are held responsible for losses incurred by electronic fraud.

The Lords published a follow-up report in July this year. "In our follow-up report we committed ourselves to keep an ongoing watch on developments in internet security and to press the government to do more to ensure that confidence in the internet is maintained," said Lord Broers.

The Friday debate will be available online at Parliament Live.