Meeting of the Parliament 17 December 2025
I am very grateful for the contributions that have been made during the debate. It is clear that there is a shared recognition across the chamber that cybercrime poses a profound and evolving challenge for Scotland. Where we might differ is not on the seriousness or urgency of the threat but on how we respond to it.
The committee report that we are debating is careful, evidence based and grounded in lived experience. It shows us that cybercrime is not confined to laptops and servers. Such crime reaches into every corner of our society. It disrupts businesses, undermines public services, damages mental health and erodes trust, and it does so in ways that disproportionately affect those with the least power and the fewest resources.
That is why the Scottish Greens will continue to argue that any response to cybercrime must start with people, not technology alone. Victims must be believed, supported and protected. Reporting systems must be clear, accessible and properly resourced. Prevention must be given at least as much weight as enforcement. As Liam McArthur and other members noted, that all means that the education, awareness raising and support that we provide for people must be appropriately tailored to the right audience, whether it is older people at risk of scams, young people who spend more and more of their lives in digital spaces or organisations that hold valuable data and information.