From 30 September to 2 October 2026, 150 prosecutors of the districts of Milan, Turin, Genoa, Bologna, Brescia, Trento and Venice have attended the training on “Digital Evidence and Judicial Cooperation: The EU E-evidence Package and the Second Additional Protocol to the Budapest Convention”  organised by the Higher School of the Judiciary in Italy with the support of the CyberSPEX project, a joint action of the European Union and the Council of Europe.

The course offered to the practitioners the opportunity to examine the two instruments -Second Additional Protocol and EU Evidence provisions - and strengthen understanding of their practical use in criminal cases.

The course addressed the complementarity of the two instruments, built theoretical knowledge in support of their practical use in cross-border investigations. Sessions considered the EU E-evidence Package, which establishes production and preservation orders for electronic evidence, and the Second Additional Protocol, which strengthens international co-operation through mechanisms including requests for domain-name registration information, disclosure of subscriber data and emergency procedures.

The programme combined introductory lectures with a round table with service providers on emergency access to computer data and co-operation with internet service providers. It also concluded with a practical session on completing the forms and templates developed under the CyberSPEX project for the operational cooperation under the Protocol, using potential procedural challenges as a starting point for discussion. 

The activity was part of the overall efforts of the Italian authorities to align their national legislation with the two instruments and addressed the challenges in applying the procedural provisions in cross-border cases, alongside the applicable conditions and safeguards, including respect for human rights, proportionality and personal data protection.