Webinar

Introduction to Cyberviolence

Practical details

  Speakers

  • Betty SHAVE, Council of Europe expert – T-CY Mapping study on cyberviolence
  • Katarzyna WOLSKA-WRONA, Expert on gender-based violence, European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) – Cyber violence against women and girls
  • Johanna NELLES, Council of Europe, Head of Violence against Women Division, Executive Secretary of the Istanbul Convention monitoring mechanism (GREVIO and Committee of the Parties) – The Istanbul Convention and Council of Europe Recommendation on Sexism
  • Menno ETTEMA, Council of Europe, Programme Manager, Anti-Discrimination Department, No Hate Speech and Cooperation Unit – Council of Europe's work to prevent and combat hate speech and hate crime online

  Moderator

  • Giorgi JOKHADZE, Project Manager, Cybercrime Programme Office, Council of Europe (C-PROC)

  Outline

  This webinar is organized in the framework of joint European Union and Council of Europe CyberEast project aiming to support cyber resilience of the Eastern Partnership countries.

 Date and time

  • Thursday, 18 June 2020 | 12:00 PM CET

 Duration 

  • 1h30' (55' presentations and dedicated questions + 35' general discussions)

 Audience

  • Particularly useful for officials from policy makers responsible for cybercrime and cybersecurity, criminal justice authorities (judges, prosecutors, law enforcement agencies), staff from the national CSIRTs, as well as non-governmental organizations and researchers/academia having interest in the subject.
  • This activity of the CyberEast project is open for participation to other beneficiary countries in different regions covered by the C-PROC.

  Language: English only

Presentations and Q&A
Details

Background

“Cyberviolence is the use of computer systems to cause, facilitate, or threaten violence against individuals that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual, psychological or economic harm or suffering and may include the exploitation of the individual’s circumstances, characteristics or vulnerabilities.” (T-CY Mapping study on cyberviolence, 2019)

This definition, although still a work on progress, suggests an extreme breadth of topics that are covered by the concept of cyberviolence. Some of these – such as violence against women and girls, cyber-harassment, cyber-bullying and violations of privacy, as well as hate speech – will be discussed during the webinar.

However, it is equally important to treat cyberviolence as an area of cooperation between various actors and initiatives for ensuring safer online environment for everyone. This presents multiple opportunities for cyberviolence to serve as an “integration” concept between various related themes; cybercrime and criminal justice response in general, as well as specific powers and procedures for electronic evidence offered by the Budapest Convention, could be among possible avenues for such cooperation.

Moreover, in times of ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and continuing restrictions that increase reliance on the Internet, cyberviolence may be even more pervasive than before, and call for more coherent and coordinated approach between governments, private sector and the civil society.

Objectives

The purpose of this webinar is to introduce the subject matter of cyberviolence from the perspective of relevant topics that are inherently connected to the use of information and communications technology.

Although not exhaustive in scope and coverage of respective forms of cyberviolence, this webinar will be an introduction to the series of dedicated webinars that will further focus on specific themes and areas discussed during the event.

The webinar is designed to encourage an interactive participation and to facilitate information sharing among participants, discussing relevant experiences, good practices, challenges and opportunities.

Expected outcomes

  • Identify and discuss different forms of cyberviolence;
  • Discuss roles and responsibilities of various institutions and actors, including law enforcement, in deterring and handling of these threats;
  • Present good practices of dealing with various forms of cyberviolence.

Resources