Residents on how to handle and report cybercrimes

The brochure addresses ways to prevent any such illegal practices from occurring A brochure informing residents on how to handle and report cybercrimes has been launched by the Abu Dhabi Police. Available in Arabic and English, the pamphlet will be distributed among all Ministries and service institutions across the Emirate, on Wednesday as the phenomenon of Internet crimes is being taken seriously at the Ministry of Interior.
Therefore, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) which has adopted this project, will translate the pamphlet into several languages in a bid to reach out to the largest possible audience.
Major General Mohammad Bin Al Awadi Al Menhali, Director General of Police Operations at the Abu Dhabi Police stated that users may fall victim to cybercrimes especially when conducting their shopping online and so the brochure addresses ways to prevent any such illegal practices from occurring.
The Abu Dhabi Police is keen on fighting this phenomenon and is ready to provide all means of help for the public.
Al Menhali added that more officers are being specialised in the field in order to be able to handle cybercrimes and face this constant danger.
Meanwhile Colonel Dr Rashid Mohammad Borshid, director of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at Abu Dhabi Police, said that the pamphlet is a way to reach out to the public and give them a sense of safety and security. He also stated that users should be careful when using instant messaging and to refrain from discussing personal matters and sharing personal photos in addition to periodically changing their passwords, and to always ‘logout\' of different websites.
The official highlighted the importance of scanning all attachments received in e-mails using an anti-virus before opening them and to ignore e-mails asking for personal information such as passwords.
Finally residents are always advised to use safe websites beginning with ‘https\' and to always keep a track record of every purchase they make while checking the legitimacy of their source of purchase. The pamphlet also advised users to refrain from using their credit cards during online shopping.
To report any such online scams, dial 02-512-7777 or 8002626 or by e-mail at ecrime@adpolice.gov.ae.
Source: Gulf News