File on 4 Investigates Folgen

The criminal exploitation of the internet poses one of the biggest threats to UK national security. As organised crime gangs and terrorists use it to communicate and plan their activities, the police and security agencies are turning to hacking to conduct surveillance and gather intelligence. In the first of a new series, File on 4 looks at the covert techniques being used to get beyond the firewall of a suspect's PC. But are the tactics legal? One leading expert says the rules governing interception are inconsistent and on occasions, misinterpreted by the police.Reporter Stephen Grey also examines the way British companies are helping to proliferate this hi-tech snooping to countries with questionable human rights and which use it to monitor political opponents and dissidents. And, with the Ministry of Defence developing its defences against sophisticated international attacks how vulnerable is the UK to "cyber warfare". Why did a Chinese state telecommunications company briefly 'hijack' most of the world's internet traffic one day last year? Producer: David Lewis Reporter: Stephen Grey.

The Government's strategy to boost local enterprise in England began poorly. The Director of the CBI criticised it as 'a shambles' and Business Secretary Vince Cable admitted it was 'Maoist and chaotic'.Now 36 Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) have been established with the aim of supporting economic growth and innovation and encouraging a network of Enterprise Zones. But some experts remain sceptical. They claim that the policy has failed to put business interests first and that in some parts of the country it has been hijacked by local politicians. Others complain that areas of deprivation have been overlooked in favour of more affluent neighbours. There is also concern that the strategy is not implementing the government's policy of localism. Can LEPs deliver the economic fruits they promise? Or will some just fizzle out, as one insider fears? Gerry Northam reports.Producer: Ian Muir-Cochrane Editor: David Ross.

The UK is the largest bilateral donor to Rwanda, giving around £83m a year. President Paul Kagame is praised by the British government for bringing stability and economic growth to a country torn apart by the genocide in 1994. But recently it was revealed that two opponents of the Rwandan regime living in London had been warned by police they were in danger of being assassinated by their own government. Other Rwandans living in the UK have been threatened too. The Rwandan High Commission say the allegations are baseless.Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe also receives substantial amounts of British aid but via charities and other non-governmental organisations. However, an exile who had attended opposition Movement for Democratic Change meetings in the UK has been revealed as a former torturer. Although he's rejected his past, its alleged the man was until recently on the pay-roll of Zimbabwe's notorious Central Intelligence Organisation - leaving the ex patriot Zimbabwean community scared and in disarray.Jenny Cuffe asks whether in the light of such claims the British government should question its aid policy.