The advisory has come in the wake of the growing challenge posed by cyber criminals, many of whom are based abroad and thus out of the jurisdiction of the local law enforcing authorities.
"Modern electronic crimes have come to be a great challenge for the entities concerned in the county due to the international nature of the crime. Many of the cases also are of a sensitive nature involving the personal and private aspects of the victims," Colonel Ali Hassan al-Kubaisi, head of the economic crimes prevention section at the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ministry of Interior, said.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the official said cyber criminals have made "great advancements" in their modus operandi which make it difficult for the ordinary people to escape their attacks. "The most common ways of online crimes are blackmail and fraud."
He said such crimes are witnessing a "major advancement" due to the rapidly developing technology, as criminals quickly adapt their styles and methods with such development.
"To combat such crimes, Qatar has issued Law No 14 for 2014, which has provisions to fight most forms of online crimes and provide for strict penalties for each category of such criminal action."
The official said that many people "overuse and misuse" new online technologies to insult or defame others thinking that they would not be easily caught by the security department. But he said criminals cannot escape the long arms of justice.
He also advised people not to trust online applications to keep vital information pertaining to bank accounts, as these can be easily infiltrated by hackers, however good the protection software might be . "Besides, all smart devices, and computers are linked online to a certain account. When one single devise is hacked, all the other devices could be hacked easily. So, it is important to keep such information out of the reach of hackers. "
Stressing the need for caution, the official said many people have been blackmailed by hackers who forced their victims to pay money, threatening to otherwise disclose sensitive information and photos of family members. It is often difficult to apprehend the culprits as they might be based in another country other than that of the victim. "So people should not accept unknown friend requests or open any unfamiliar links."
Qatari law envisages up to three years in jail and a fine of QR100,000 or either for blackmail or threatening through the internet. Sexual abuse of children online involves a jail term of up to five years and a maximum fine of QR500,000. The same applies to the production or circulation child pornography .
On dealing with the victims, Colonel al-Kubaisi stressed that the security department took care to protect their identity and treated them with utmost care. He urged that to maintain the highest levels of secrecy, victims should communicate directly with the criminal investigation department headquarter at Duhail, through Metrash 2, or the hotline 66815757; email [email protected]
Colonel Ali Hassan al-Kubaisi
Qatar residents should keep important information away from online applications by storing them on CDs, flash drives or external hard drives, a senior official of the Interior Ministry has advised.
