KUALA LUMPUR: New comprehensive legislation is needed to cover cybercrime and substance abuse, says Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye.

The Alliance for a Safe Community chairman said this in response to the call from Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay for continuous upgrading of law enforcement personnel to combat evolving cybercrime and substance abuse.

"He has touched on an important element in the fight against crime. I hope various authorities will be able to galvanise their efforts to take on these challenges," he said when contacted on Wednesday (May 8).

Lee called on the government to study the possibility of introducing new, comprehensive legislation capable of covering all aspects of cybercrime and substance abuse.

"As we all know, cybercrime and substance abuse have introduced many challenges to our society and nation, and have a huge impact on the people and nation as a whole," said Lee.

He added that there should be more community awareness so that people are aware of threats in cyberspace.

"They have to be vigilant and on guard against any form of misleading information that can result in them being victims of cybercrime," he added.

Lee said the public should also play their part in safeguarding themselves against cybersecurity threats.

It was reported that the rapid change in technology requires the police to constantly improve the capabilities of its personnel in combating crime, especially cybercrime and the abuse of new psychoactive substances (NPS), Ayob Khan had said.

“The rapid growth of information technology has unfortunately enhanced cybercrime and NPS abuse activities globally.

“The increasing use of digital devices, encryption methods and anonymity services poses complex technical challenges to law enforcement agencies.

“The transborder nature of these emerging threats makes it difficult for law enforcement agencies to pursue legal action due to jurisdictional limitations.

"Thus, cooperation between different countries’ law enforcement agencies is crucial in addressing these challenges,” he said in his speech before launching a seminar on Cybercrime and Substance Abuse Consciousness held in conjunction with Defence Services Asia (DSA) and National Security (NatSec) Asia 2024 on Tuesday (May 7).

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/05/08/new-legislation-needed-to-tackle-cybercrime-substance-abuse-says-lam-thye