'Web Patrol': Montreal opposition propose task force to tackle cybercrime
Montreal's official opposition wants a new task force to tackle cybercrime in the city -- a move supporters say could help steer young people away from gun violence.
Ensemble Montreal is asking the city's police force (SPVM) to implement an online "Web Patrol" composed of social and community workers.
The idea is to help young people deal with cyberbullying, online stalking and other web-based criminal activity.
Will Baptiste is a counsellor with NSK, an organization that helps disadvantaged youth in Montreal.
He says such a task force, which would monitor social networks, could keep young people from turning to gangs and gun violence.
"The gangs or people on the street make them feel like they are a person. They make them feel like, 'hey I can do anything,'" he explained. "So now they get into the gang, but now there's a price to pay."
"When it's time to pull the trigger, you feel like you're loyal to them."
A recent SPVM report called armed violence a primary concern.
In 2021, a shooting happened, on average, once every two and a half days in the city.
Ensemble Montreal says it's common for disputes to start online before moving to the streets.
The Montreal administration said that while new ideas to limit gang violence are welcome, looking for illegal activity online is something the SPVM already does.
"They're one of the few police services that have a specific team that help investigators on the web," said city councillor Allain Vaillancourt.
In 2021, there were 3,085 reported instances of cybercrime in Montreal, examples of which are extortion, threats and bullying in Montreal.
It's more than double what was reported in 2017.
Vaillancourt says education for young people is a big part of the city's prevention plan.
"I want to reassure Montrealers that there's already a lot done about cyber criminality and web in the schools, for example," he said.
He said SPVM prevention officers have a presence in schools to educate youth on cyber issues.
But Baptiste says there's still more work to do.
"There's got to be more," he said. "We are talking about the lives of our children that are in peril right now."
If the motion passes, Ensemble Montreal expects the SPVM to set up the team before the end of the year.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.