Tommy Tuberville: “over the last few decades, large parts of our daily lives--like work, education, and even personal finance--moved…”

“over the last few decades, large parts of our daily lives--like work, education, and even personal finance--moved online. The emergence of computers, the internet, and mobile devices have created a more interconnected world more than ever. But this being connected can also be used by bad actors. The entire world of information is at our fingertips, but also, so is cyber crime. Because of this, those charged with keeping us safe have the increasingly difficult task of not only protecting us from the rising physical crime scene in our communities across the country but also from cyber crime that is impossible to see and much harder to detect. Law enforcement officials in Alabama, my State, recognized the problem early on. In 2006--before we all had smart phones in our pockets--the Alabama Office of Prosecution Services and the Alabama District Attorneys Association saw the need for a more coordinated effort to train law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and judges in digital evidence. They saw how the digital landscape was and still is constantly evolving and how those in law enforcement needed to keep up. But they also recognized how traditionally the largest departments with the biggest budgets were the only ones who could afford the training necessary to help their officers fight cyber and electronic crime.…”