Colombo, 9 March 2022 – The COVID-19 pandemic has been accompanied by a major surge in cybercrime and challenges related to electronic evidence. This is also true for Asia. The Council of Europe under its Octopus Project and in co-operation with the Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA) together with Sri Lanka CERT, therefore, held a regional workshop on this topic in Colombo, Sri Lanka, from 7 to 9 March 2022. This event was organised with the financial support of the Government of Japan.
The workshop brought together some forty experts participating in person and representing criminal justice authorities of Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, the US Department of Justice and INTERPOL. In addition, experts from Japan, Indonesia and UNODC contributed online.
The event resulted in a number of proposals to ensure a more effective criminal justice response to current COVID-19-related cybercrime and other crises and challenges that may occur in the future.
In his opening remarks, Jayantha De Silva, Secretary, Ministry of Technology of Sri Lanka, emphasised that the “securing of electronic evidence from foreign service providers is vital for the investigation and prosecution of modern criminal offences. Since this evidence is located in multiple jurisdictions, the need for more effective international cooperation is paramount. Sri Lanka has been able to use the Budapest Convention for meaningful and effective international cooperation to gather electronic evidence in several criminal cases”. Mr .De Silva also emphasized the benefits Sri Lanka got from becoming the first country in South Asia to join the Budapest Cybercrime Convention, including the trust based partnership created for criminal justice authorities. The inauguration was also attended by Chairman ICTA Oshada Senanayake and Chairman Sri Lanka CERT Rohan Muttiah.
“The COVID pandemic has transformed our lives and many of our activities now take place online. As a consequence, crime in cyberspace has increased and become more complex and sophisticated. In these circumstances, the Budapest Convention is particularly useful as a guideline for domestic legislation and as a framework for international cooperation. Japan continues to emphasise its value also for Asian countries, including within the framework of the ASEAN–Japan Cybercrime Dialogue,” stated Ambassador Takeshi Akamatsu, Permanent Observer of Japan to the Council of Europe.
“Data protection safeguards are often a prerequisite to permit the effective transfer of personal data for criminal justice purposes. Sri Lanka is in the final stages of adopting domestic legislation to this effect”, said Jayantha Fernando, General Counsel of ICTA and Director of the Sri Lanka CERT, and “Sri Lanka has benefited greatly from being a Party to the Budapest Convention for seven years by now, including in terms of capacity building but also where cooperation was needed in emergency situations”.
“The huge increase in cybercrime during the COVID-19 pandemic underlines the urgency of strengthening the capacities of public authorities to effectively counter cybercrime,” Alexander Seger, Head of the Cybercrime Division, Council of Europe, added. “We at the Council of Europe are committed to supporting Asian countries to strengthen their laws, policies and practices necessary to respond both to the COVID-19 crisis and future challenges. The tools of the Budapest Convention and its new Second Additional Protocol are essential in this respect to permit enhanced co-operation and disclosure of electronic evidence.”
The event was overshadowed by the war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine that is accompanied by massive cyberattacks. Strengthening capacities for cybersecurity and on cybercrime is now more important than ever.
Council of Europe: Cybercrime and COVID-19
Council of Europe: Second Additional Protocol to the Cybercrime Convention
Council of Europe: Regional Conference dedicated webpage
In Focus
