Cybercrime Programme Office of the Council of Europe (C-PROC)

On 8 August 2024, during the reconvened concluding session of the United Nations Ad Hoc Committee (#AHC), meeting in New York, agreement was reached on the “𝐃𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐭 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭 #𝐜𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞; 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐛𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐲 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬”.   The draft text of the treaty will soon be submitted to the UN General Assembly for formal adoption.   Reaching agreement on this complex matter is an important achievement.   Through our #CPROC office, the Council of Europe supported this treaty process from 2022 in order to ensure consistency with the 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 (𝐁𝐮𝐝𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧) and the inclusion of a minimum of necessary #humanrights and #ruleoflaw safeguards. Key provisions of the #BudapestConvention have been reproduced in the draft treaty but concerns remain regarding safeguards given positions expressed by some States.   During the AHC process, numerous countries became Parties or sought accession to the Budapest Convention. This is an indication of good prospects for 𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐞𝐬 and benefits that States may draw from both treaties. Newsroom: https://lnkd.in/dGbFM5Zt Read more about the Reconvened concluding session of the UN AHC: https://lnkd.in/dVjmQ4a2 Read more about the Convention on Cybercrime (Budapest Convention): https://lnkd.in/g_bnYjY

This week, the Embassy of 𝐂ô𝐭𝐞 𝐝'𝐈𝐯𝐨𝐢𝐫𝐞 in France deposited the instrument of accession to the 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 (#BudapestConvention). With this new accession, 76 States are now Parties, two have signed it and 15 have been invited to accede to the Convention. The authorities of Côte d’Ivoire have been cooperating with the Council of Europe on #cybercrime matters since 2011 and Côte d’Ivoire was invited to accede to the Budapest Convention on 30 June 2022. The Council of Europe will continue to support Côte d’Ivoire through its #capacitybuilding projects to permit implementation of the tools of the Convention on Cybercrime. Newsroom: https://lnkd.in/gvXmr5d2 Details of the Treaty: https://lnkd.in/eVhZbhBM Dedicated webpage of the Convention on Cybercrime and its Additional Protocols: https://lnkd.in/g_bnYjY More about the Cybercrime Convention Committee (#TCY): https://lnkd.in/dh-By3nR More about our #CPROC office and available capacity building programmes for countries worldwide: www.coe.int/cproc

During the first Steering Committee meeting of our joint European Union (European Commission) – Council of Europe #GLACYe project we heard from participants on their experience with the current and previous #GLACYplus and #GLACY projects, showing the vibrant partnership with countries. Ms Tupou'tuah Baravilala, General Director – Digital Transformation, Cybersecurity and Communications at the Ministry of Trade, Co-operatives and Small and Medium Enterprises, and Communications from #Fiji shared her views on three main takeaways from the discussions. Making sure that all the relevant stakeholders in the digital ecosystem have the right tools and the right partners, so as for criminal justice authorities to be able to successfully carry out their mandate, was emphasized – with the end goal of protecting citizens and ensuring a safe cyberspace. Watch the full interview in the video below and keep an eye on the GLACY-e project webpage for more testimonials to come. GLACY-e project webpage: https://lnkd.in/d-yEv4ax Read more about the first Steering Committee of the project: https://lnkd.in/eHe3mhBq

This week, the Philippines became the 70th country to connect to INTERPOL’s International Child Sexual Exploitation (ICSE) database. INTERPOL, in the framework of our #GLACYe joint project of the European Union and the Council of Europe, organised a five-day training program that connected the Philippines to the ICSE database and provided training on the use of the International Child Sexual Exploitation Database (ICSE) and Victim Identification. The training was delivered by INTERPOL’s Crimes against Children (CAC) Unit during 8-12 July 2024 in Manila, Philippines. Twelve law enforcement officers with responsibility for investigation of #OCSEA participated in the training program from the National Center Bureau (NCB), Women and Children Protection Centre (WCPC) of the Philippines National Police (PNP), National Bureau of Investigation Anti Human Trafficking Division (NBIATHRAD) from the Department of Justice (DoJ) and AntiCyber Crime Group (ACG) of Philippines National Police. ICSE has been operational since 2009 and is a powerful intelligence and investigation tool. It offers specialised investigators worldwide instant access to data and tools for upload and analysis of seized child sexual exploitation material (CSEM). Read more in the newsroom: https://lnkd.in/dKSPa76q More about our joint EU-CoE GLACY-e project: https://lnkd.in/d-yEv4ax

Today, the Government of France as represented by Mr Ambassador Pap Ndiaye, Permanent Representative of France to the Council of Europe (Représentation permanente de la France auprès du Conseil de l'Europe) made a voluntary contribution to our #OctopusProject, amounting to EUR 140 000. This first French voluntary contribution to the Octopus Project took place in the presence of Mr Bjorn Berge, Deputy Secretary of the Council of Europe, marking 20 years since the entry into force of the 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 (#BudapestConvention) on 1 July 2004. The Octopus Project, based on voluntary contributions from State Parties and Observers to the 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞, aims to support countries worldwide in strengthening their criminal justice capacities in line with this Treaty, its protocols and related standards. France is a Party to the Convention on Cybercrime since 2006, being one of the 75 countries worldwide to have joined the Treaty thus far. It is also one of the 36 States signatories of the 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐜𝐨𝐥 to the Budapest Convention and one of the 46 States that have signed the 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐜𝐨𝐥. We gratefully acknowledge France’s support through the Octopus Project! Newsroom: → https://lnkd.in/dCVe7QXA Read more about the Octopus Project: → www.coe.int/octopusproject More about the Convention on Cybercrime and its two additional Protocols: → https://lnkd.in/g_bnYjY → www.coe.int/cyber1AP → www.coe.int/cyber2AP

Earlier this week, in the presence of the Deputy Secretary General Bjorn Berge, Mr Shalten Hato, Minister of Justice of Curaçao, deposited the instruments of acceptance by the Netherlands of the territorial application of the 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 (#BudapestConvention, ETS 185). This marks 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐚 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲. The Council of Europe and the authorities of Curaçao will continue to cooperate to facilitate full implementation of the Convention on Cybercrime. Newsroom: https://lnkd.in/dM4a8UfA Details of the Treaty: https://lnkd.in/eVhZbhBM Dedicated webpage of the Convention on Cybercrime and its Additional Protocols: https://lnkd.in/g_bnYjY More about the Cybercrime Convention Committee (#TCY): https://lnkd.in/dh-By3nR More about our #CPROC office and available capacity building programmes for countries worldwide: www.coe.int/cproc

At the end of last week, #CyberSPEX, our newest joint project of the European Union and the Council of Europe, was also launched. The European Commission and the Council of Europe through our #CPROC office agreed to join forces in view of enhancing co-operation on cybercrime and #electronicevidence between EU member States by contributing to the implementation and ratification of the #SecondAdditionalProtocol to the 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 (Budapest Convention). As of June 2024, the 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐜𝐨𝐥 was ratified by Serbia and Japan, with 44 signatories, of which 22 EU member States.   CyberSPEX is designed to assist co-operation within EU member states and between Parties to the Convention on Cybercrime in the process of drafting, ratifying, and implementing domestic legislative changes in light of the European Union’s Regulation EU 2023/1543 on European Production Orders and European Preservation Orders for electronic evidence and the complementary Directive EU 2023/1544 on rules for designated establishments and legal representatives for the gathering of electronic evidence.   The launching event concluded with agreements regarding the 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐗 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐔 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐜𝐨𝐥 and to continue the co-operation with the EU agencies for developing the tools (guides, templates, training materials) envisaged by the project.    Newsroom: https://lnkd.in/d6nqQwHe More about the Second Additional Protocol to the Convention on Cybercrime: https://lnkd.in/dXDvm6Bb   More about our joint EU-CoE CyberSPEX project : www.coe.int/CyberSPEX

On 17 June, preceding the Cybercrime Convention Committee’s 30th plenary (#TCY), our CyberEast+ colleagues organised a fruitful Planning meeting in Strasbourg. A joint endeavour of the Council of Europe and of the European Union formally commenced on 1 March 2024 with a budget of 3.9 million EUR, the CyberEast+ project focuses on ensuring effective criminal justice response to cybercrime and electronic evidence and increased cyber-resilience. Project countries were convened to discuss objectives and the current workplan. Stronger interaction with training institutions, use of tools for selection and engagement of participants, as well as joint development of activity outlines, were among the themes emphasised during the meeting. The key takeaways showed that the CyberEast+ project is committed to ensuring that its activities are better tailored to the needs of Eastern Partnership stakeholders through more engaged planning and shared ownership of the action. Newsroom: https://lnkd.in/gE7Nn2vB More about our joint EU-CoE CyberEast+ project: https://lnkd.in/dTT38NXJ #CyberEastplus #Capacitybuilding #CouncilofEurope

Today, 20 June 2024, in the presence of the Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe Mr Bjørn Berge, and within the framework of the 30th plenary session of the T-CY, Benin, Fiji and Kiribati acceded to the Convention on Cybercrime (ETS 185). With these new accessions, 75 States are now Parties, two have signed it and 18 have been invited to accede to the Convention.   Additionally, Benin acceded to the First Additional Protocol to the Convention on cybercrime, concerning the criminalisation of acts of a racist and xenophobic nature committed through computer systems (ETS 189). This first Protocol now has 36 Parties.   Lastly, Czechia and Sierra Leone signed the Second Additional Protocol to the Convention on Cybercrime on enhanced co-operation and disclosure of electronic evidence (CETS 224). With these, 44 States have signed it, and an additional 2 are already Parties. Newsroom: https://lnkd.in/e6mGAq8T More about the Convention on Cybercrime and membership: https://lnkd.in/g_bnYjY More on the First Additional Protocol: https://lnkd.in/duCe__3s More on the Second Additional Protocol: https://lnkd.in/dXDvm6Bb #Cybercrime #CapacityBuilding #Cyberspace #HumanRights #TCY

Eventful days in Strasbourg, as on the margins of the Cybercrime Convention Committee (#TCY) also our #CyberSEE colleagues organised the first Steering Committee meeting of the project, in the framework of the Launching event. The meeting gathered representatives from the European Commission, the Council of Europe and delegates from Public Prosecution Offices, Ministries of Justice, Police Cybercrime Investigation Units, Financial Investigation Units, Computer Emergency Response Teams and training institutions from all priority countries/areas. Presenting the project’s concept and workplan, while providing a platform for sharing developments and regional priorities for criminal justice actions on cybercrime and electronic evidence was on the agenda. New concepts such as the 𝐒𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐞, 𝐂𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐎𝐥𝐲𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐬 and 𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐬 were introduced, along with the project’s objectives. The European Commission emphasised the project's relevance, the significant progress in the region, and their commitment to supporting the future project action. Through CyberSEE, we will continue supporting South-East Europe and Türkiye in addressing the challenges of cybercrime and achieving stronger compliance with the 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 (Budapest Convention) through #capacitybuilding actions. Newsroom: https://lnkd.in/dGA85DAk More about our joint EU-CoE CyberSEE project: https://lnkd.in/dW_7J4xd