In an era when a single cybercriminal can sow chaos, taking whole countries offline, everybody in the world with a smartphone in their pocket, has “a role to play” in the fight against the growing scourge.

That’s the view of Neil Walsh, chief of the cybercrime team which is part of the UN’s Office on Drugs and Crime.

He says it’s vital for all countries around the world to keep talking to each other about cybersecurity, whether they are overtly or covertly engaged in their own national security operations online.

Matt Wells asked Mr. Walsh to describe the state of the underground cybercrime industry worldwide today.