With that in mind, the UK's signals intelligence agency, Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), and its top law enforcement body, the National Crime Agency (NCA), have formed a new unit compromising of officers from both agencies to tackle online crime.

"An NCA and GCHQ co-located Joint Operations Cell (JOC) opens officially today," an NCA press release published Friday reads. "The unit brings together officers from the two agencies to focus initially on tackling online child sexual exploitation."

This unit has been in the works for some time. Back at the end of 2014, UK Prime Minister David Cameron announced the plan for its formation at We Protect Children Online Global Summit. At the time, he said that "The so-called 'dark-net' is increasingly used by paedophiles to view sickening images. I want them to hear loud and clear: we are shining a light on the web's darkest corners; if you are thinking of offending, there will be nowhere for you to hide." At the summit, it was said that GCHQ's technical skills would be its contribution to the unit.