Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome An Bord Pleanála's decision of 16 November confirming that the Player Wills site on the South Circular Road will remain on the vacant sites register. This site is valued at €100 million. The annual vacant site levy is 7% and this will be ring-fenced for local regeneration projects and is payable to Dublin City Council. I hope this decision will ensure that the site is developed expediently and that there will be proper planning, housing and amenities in this area, which needs attention from the Government. I look forward to seeing the plans and seeing movement on the site.

I have raised the issue of cyber and telephone scams on unsuspecting members of the public. The Revenue Commissioners have warned about a scam that involves an unsolicited call from people purporting to work for the Revenue demanding immediate payment of tax bills and being told that a criminal case will be taken against them if they do not pay their putative tax bill immediately. I understand that no one has fallen victim to the scam yet but it is likely that somebody could, and people should realise that they should not give credit card or personal details over the phone, especially in response to an unsolicited caller.

Cybercrime is a major issue, which is starting to affect more and more businesses, particularly in respect of malware and ransomware. According to Europol's fifth annual Iinternet organised crime threat assessment, ransomware was the greatest malware threat in 2018. Ransomware lockdowns can result in outages, financial loss and reputational damage. Large companies and public organisations were attacked by ransomware last year. Their systems were encrypted and locked down. Now this ransomware is not only affecting desktop computers and servers but is starting to attack people's phones. It is something that people need to be aware of to ensure that all their software is updated and they have all their security settings on. If it is ignored, it goes away but it can be upsetting for people to receive, especially the ransomware-type emails because they feel vulnerable if they receive them. I would like people to make sure that all their security systems, particularly on their phones, are updated and that they ignore any ransomware-type messages that they receive by email.