UN member states on Thursday (8/8) approved for the first time a pact targeting cybercrime, despite strong opposition from human rights activists who warned of the potential dangers of such surveillance.
After three years of negotiations, plus two weeks of final talks in New York, members finally agreed by consensus on the “United Nations Convention against Cybercrime.” The convention will now be submitted to the General Assembly for formal adoption.
“I consider this document… adopted. Thank you very much, bravo to everyone,” Algerian diplomat Faouzia Boumaiza Mebarki, who chaired the pact's drafting committee, said as she applauded.
Despite opposition from the United States and Europe, the committee was formed following a proposal put forward by Russia in 2017.
The new pact will come into force after being ratified by 40 member states and aims to “prevent and combat cybercrime more efficiently and effectively,” particularly related to child sexual abuse imagery and money laundering.
However, some critics, especially from an alliance of human rights activists and big tech companies, have slammed the agreement as being too broad in scope; and at the same time, they say it could become a global “surveillance” pact and could be used for repression.
The adopted text stipulates that in investigating any crime – which carries a minimum penalty of four years imprisonment under a country’s national law – UN member states may request the authorities of another country to provide any electronic evidence related to the crime, and may also request data from internet service providers. (th/em)
