KINGSTON, Jamaica — A joint select committee of Parliament, which had been reviewing Jamaica’s Cybercimes Act, says it is concerned that three years after the Act has been promulgated there has only been one prosecution.

The committee, chaired by junior minister for Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Julian Robinson, raised the concern in its conclusion to a report tabled in the House of Representatives, Tuesday.

“It is the hope of the committee that with the recommended revisions, subsequent to the review, more persons found to be in breach of the Act will be brought to book and successfully prosecuted,” the report said.

However, the committee noted that cyber offences usually involve “some kind of economic elements, or some types of economic gains”.

The committee had been deliberating since January 24, reviewing the Jamaican Cybercrimes Act which was promulgated in December 2010.

The Act provides for criminal sanctions for misuse of the computer system or data, and the abuse of electronic means of completing transactions. It also facilitates the investigation and prosecution of cyber crimes.

Several other pieces of legislation are also utilised in prosecuting offences under the Cybercrimes Act, including the Larceny Act, the Interception of Communications Act, the Child Pornography Act and the Evidence Act.

Balford Henry