SYDNEY, March 3 (Reuters) - Australia said on Friday it will offer the world's first university course to train intelligence analysts to fight cyber crime, prompted by innovative methods of money transfer among organised crime and militant groups.
The measure expands on Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's attempts to ratchet up policing of money transfers amid concerns that organised crime and militant groups are using technology such as the "dark web" and cryptocurrencies to make their payments hard to trace.
In the past year, Turnbull has expanded the role of money-tracking agency the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) and agreed to share financial crime intelligence with China. Friday, Justice Minister Michael Keenan said AUSTRAC would start teaching the world's first university-accredited "Financial Intelligence Analyst Course" after 16 law enforcement analysts sat a pilot course.
"As organised crime and terrorism becomes more sophisticated, our law enforcement and intelligence agencies need highly skilled people to fight back and protect our national security," Keenan said in a statement.
Keenan also said Australia had established a formal partnership between AUSTRAC and a host of law enforcement, tax and financial services organisations to coordinate the gathering of financial intelligence.
Keenan said the "Fintel" partnership would include Britain's Financial Intelligence Unit and that AUSTRAC was in discussion with other potential international partners.