Three specialist police cybercrime teams have been created across the UK to tackle the growing threat of online crime.
The centres will be set up in Yorkshire and the Humber, the Northwest and East Midlands and they will work alongside the Metropolitan Police Centre e-crime Unit (PCeU) in London, which deals with national online security, the BBC said.
The hubs are part of a four-year, £30m commitment from the UK government to improve national capability to investigate and combat cyber crime. The units will be staffed by a detective sergeant and two detective constables, who will be fully trained before the units are operational.
ACPO head of e-crime and deputy assistant commissioner Janet Williams said the three units will play a "crucial role" in protecting the UK from the threat of cybercrime.
"It is anticipated the hubs will make a significant contribution to the national harm reduction target of £504m," she added. "In the first six months of the new funding period alone we have already been able to show a reduction of £140m with our existing capability. They will undoubtedly provide an enhanced ability to investigate this fast growing area of crime and provide an improved internet investigation capability."
"As well as leading the fight in their regions, these units mark a significant step forward in developing a national response to cyber crime, which will be driven by the new National Crime Agency. The government has committed £650m in the fight against e-crime," added James Brokenshire, Minister for Crime and Security.
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