PEOPLE using spyware in Bradford have been visited as part of a crackdown on cyber crime.

Police investigating the sale of software which allows users to steal information from other people's computers have been to several homes

as part of their investigation.

Nine addresses across the county, including homes in Bradford, have been visited after spyware, which allows the user to hack into someone else's computer and steal information, including pictures and videos, was traced to each address.

Although it is not illegal to purchase spyware, it is an offence to use it to access someone else's data without their permission.

Detective Inspector Vanessa Smith, who is leading the operation, said: "Officers are in the process of visiting the addresses of people we believe have purchased a specific type of spyware that enables them to steal information from other people.

"These visits and the accompanying letter is known as a Cease and Desist Notice and involve officers speaking to those who've ordered the software and making them aware of the legislation around their use.

"During the last year we've seen national and international news following the theft and redistribution of personal information, including pictures and videos. This rapidly expanding area of criminality can leave victims extremely emotionally distressed and open to blackmail as well as financial theft."

Officers believe many young people, including a number of teenagers, are buying the spyware and often using their parents' bank accounts to pay for it.

DI Smith said: "I know from other colleagues across the country that a number of parents' have been completely unaware their children have bought spyware using money from their accounts.

"I would encourage parents and carers to regularly change any passwords to online accounts, including the addition of commas, hashes and asterisks and ask questions if their children have approached them to buy any type of computer software.

"This is not about the criminalisation of young people, many of who may be using this product for little more than a practical joke on their friends, but parents need to be aware of the darker side of this activity involving blackmail and bullying. Teenagers using this type of product are also unwittingly taking the first steps into a world of cyber-criminality."

Prosecutions from the use of malicious computer software can result in ten years in prison.