Government to update Computer Misuse Act

The Government is making provisions to update the Computer Misuse Act.

This was revealed by Senator Kay McConney, Minister of Innovation, Science and Smart Technology (MIST) as she spoke during Fortinet’s recent virtual forum, which was hosted in association with MIST.

“There is the Computer Misuse Act; this has provision generally for some crimes committed using computer systems. However, with the ever increasing sophistication of crimes committed through the internet, there is a need for us to strengthen even that Act and to strengthen in general the legal framework to meet the highest regional and international standards and to promote a safe cyberspace environment,” she said.

“Further, in terms of procedural law, there is a need for procedural tools for investigation to address the issue of territoriality in cross-bordering investigations. There is so much more that we need to do and we continue to evolve the way in which we approach cyber-security from a legislative perspective.

“Our intention is to review not only the Computer Misuse Act so that it brings us in compliance with current international practice, but also we need to expand provisions to make it more relevant in an evolving digital age.”

In addition to this, McConney stated that Government is working on amending and drafting legislation to include security for network and information systems.

She explained that this would include a mandate that operators of essential services and key digital service providers implement robust controls that would protect their systems against cyber-threats, as well as put cyber-security incident response mechanisms in place that would report cyber attacks to the correct authorities in a timely manner.

She also revealed that Barbados has been working with international partners, including the Organisation of American States, to finalise their National Security Strategy and Action plan.

McConney confirmed that a draft has already been prepared that seeks to emphasise five major areas: developing a national cyber-security mindset, their robust legal framework, incident responses capabilities, critical infrastructural protection, and international cooperation.