- 'Countries must prove their systems are protected against theft of credits by hackers'
"The European commission's emergency suspension last week of trading in carbon allowances to put a halt to rampant theft of credits by hackers has been extended indefinitely until countries can prove their systems are protected from further fraud.
While the suspension had been expected to end last night, Brussels now says that the freeze in trades had been imposed to give the commission executive some breathing space to figure out what to do.
"The suspension last week was only a transitional measure to give the commission and member states the time to assess the situation and decide the way forward," the commission's climate spokeswoman, Maria Kokkonen, said....
A total of 30 countries that participate in the Emissions Trading Scheme, Europe's flagship climate change policy, must now send assessments of the situation
- performed by independent monitors.
On 19 January, the commission suspended "spot" trading in allowances after up to 2m permits worth around €30m were stolen by computer hackers. Brussels said that half the participating countries were not sufficiently secure.
- Permits went missing in Austria, the Czech Republic and Greece.
"We must check the reports and it may take some time," Kokkonen said, although, according to one EU source, this will be "weeks, not months"....
She added that while the general suspension is likely to persist for weeks, "certain movements some time next week"
- may occur on a country-by-country basis.
The UK is thought to be one of the states most likely to be given the all-clear, while the countries where the problems originated are having the most difficulties adhering to security requirements.
Once there is a centralised clearinghouse, starting in 2013, Kokkonen said these sort of problems will no longer be an issue:
"We have to survive till 2013.""
via Tom Nelson
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