European Cybercrime Centre

Overview
On March 29, 2012, the European Commission proposed the establishment of a new European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) at Europol in The Hague, which will become the focal point in the EU's fight against cybercrime. The Centre will be operational by January 1, 2013. It will pool expertise, support criminal investigations and promote EU-wide solutions, while raising awareness of cybercrime issues across the EU.

In addition to the analytical and operational support already provided by Europol, the European Cybercrime Centre will serve as the European information hub on cybercrime. The Centre will also develop cutting edge digital forensic capabilities to support investigations in the EU. It will also build capacity to combat cybercrime through training, awareness raising and delivering the best practice on cybercrime investigations.

In addition, the Centre plans to build a community of experts from all sectors of society to combat and prevent cybercrime and online child sexual abuse.