EU assembly backs reprieve for Internet body

STRASBOURG, France (Reuters) - The European Parliament agreed on Tuesday to extend the life of the European Union’s Internet security body as threats to the Web increase.

The European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA), a small body set up in 2004, was due to be closed next year.

But rising cyber-crime has triggered a rethink as economies increasingly depend on a trouble-free Web.

The EU assembly gave the green light for the three-year reprieve to 2012, which EU states endorsed last week.

ENISA has an annual budget of 8 million euros (6.2 million pounds) and fewer than 50 staff. Lawmakers were dismayed that it had no remit or resources to deal with cyber attacks like that experienced by EU member Estonia, which accused Russia of causing government websites to crash.

EU Information Society and Media Commissioner Viviane Reding said the attack on Estonia showed that security of information networks was critical.

"Whatever the source of these attacks, international cooperation is needed to prevent them or to reduce the damage," she said in a speech in South Korea.

"The European Commission intends to present at the beginning of 2009 proposals on the protection of critical information infrastructures, with the aim to improve the response capability in the European Union and to better contribute to international .....continued below

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(Reporting by Huw Jones; Editing by Giles Elgood)