NEW YORK (APBnews.com) -- As computer security experts met in Paris this week to discuss ways to combat cybercrime, a new report calls for better cooperation among police agencies, greater enforcement of existing computer crime laws and a public education campaign about the dangers of cyberspace.

The study, "An International Policy Framework for Internet Law Enforcement and Security," was conducted by the Internet Alliance, an association that represents major U.S. high-tech companies.

It was released Tuesday as leaders from the world's top industrialized nations, the Group of Eight, meet for a three-day conference on "A Government/Industry Dialogue on Safety and Confidence in Cyberspace."

The G8 consists of the United States, Japan, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Canada and Russia.

Members of the Internet Alliance include IBM, America Online, Bell Atlantic, Citibank, Cox Interactive, Deutsche Telekom, DLJDirect, MCI WorldCom/UUNET, Microsoft and Prodigy. The alliance is an independent subsidiary of The Direct Marketing Association.

'Love Bug' offers a warning

The international conference is meeting soon after the release of the destructive "ILOVEYOU" computer virus, which crippled government and corporate e-mail systems and could eventually cost $10 billion.

Earlier this year, a number of the Web's most popular sites, such as Yahoo, eBay, Amazon.com, CNN.com and Buy.com, among others, were knocked offline for hours by a denial-of-service attack.

"Events like February's denial-of-service attacks and the 'Love Bug' this month remind us that criminal activity online is not constrained by geographical boundaries," said Jeff Richards, executive director of the Internet Alliance. "Accordingly, we need a way to address the solutions to such crime online. This [report] does exactly that.

"It is groundbreaking because it is the first of its kind to propose a framework for addressing international cyber law enforcement."

Law enforcement strained

The report echoes earlier studies and calls for greater cooperation in battling cybercriminals.

"In combating cybercrime, we looked to apply a levelheaded, first-things-first approach and encourage the application of existing laws before rushing to create new ones," the report states. "Of course, there are many obstacles to effectively enforcing these laws. The Internet knows no borders, thus coordination within nation-states and internationally is problematic.

"While some such efforts to address this are underway, many more are needed," according to the report.

The increase in all types of cybercrimes is making it difficult for law enforcement agencies to keep up with the workload and creating a demand for computer security experts, the Internet Alliance says.

"While the Internet industry is well positioned to help, industry cooperation in assisting law enforcement in investigations should be voluntary and in strict compliance with existing law," says the report.

Law enforcement roles defined

Andrew Mathews, the communications and research manager at the Internet Alliance, said the latest report recommends steps that can promote confidence and trust in the Internet.

"This paper takes those principles and defines the proper roles of law enforcement, industry and consumers in addressing crime on the Internet," Mathews said.

The report says that most online crime is "offline" crime that is just occurring in a new medium. Therefore, the "primary guiding principle" is how to apply laws already on the books to offenses committed on the Internet.

While there needs to be greater cooperation among computer security experts in the private sector, they don't want to be forced into the role of policing the Net.

"Industry cooperation with law enforcement should be both voluntary and within the limits of the current law," notes the report.

"The most crucial task today is to enhance lawful cooperation between industry and law enforcement when addressing online crime," added Ron Teixeira, Law Enforcement and Security Council Coordinator at the Internet Alliance. "Through the expertise of our Law Enforcement and Security Council, we have already begun to bring together the top Internet security experts in the world to proactively address online security issues."

Agencies should share resources

Steps are already being taken in the United States for local law enforcement agencies to pool resources. One example is the creation of the Computer Law Enforcement of Washington State cooperative agreement that was approved by the state's U.S. attorney's office, the FBI, Washington State Police and Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys and Police Chiefs, among other groups.

"The Internet, which holds so much promise for e-commerce, entertainment and research, also has a dark side inhabited by child molesters, con men and hate mongers," said Christine Gregoire, Washington state attorney general. "The message we are sending ... is that law enforcement in Washington has teamed up to fight Internet crime and abuse."

The Washington state law enforcement compact is designed to: