UN to draft cybercrime treaty

THE UN General Assembly has approved a resolution that will start the process of drafting a new international treaty to combat cybercrime.

The resolution, drafted by Russia (俄羅斯) and other countries, was approved on 27 December by the 193-member world body by a vote of 79-60 with 33 abstentions, over objections from the European Union,the United States and its allies.

It establishes an expert committee representing all regions of the world “to elaborate a comprehensive international convention on countering the use of information and communications technologies for criminal purposes”.

The committee will meet in August 2020 to agree on an outline of work.

US deputy ambassador Cherith Norman Chalet said the “resolution will undermine international cooperation to combat cybercrime at a time when enhanced coordination is essential”.

“There is no consensus among member states on the need or value of drafting a new treaty,” she said. “It will only serve to stifl e global efforts to combat cybercrime.”

“It is wrong to make a political decision on a new treaty before cybercrime experts can give their advice,”Chalet said, adding that the resolution “prejudges” and “will undermine” the experts’ work.

The EU said the UN’s existing intergovernmental expert group on cybercrime is already tackling the question of whether a new treaty is needed.

(This article is published on Junior Standard on 7 January 2020)

Cybercrime – UN Office on Drugs and Crime
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Cyber security and technology crime – Hong Kong
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