10 NOVEMBER, 11.15-13.00 

Across the world, women are playing a crucial role in the criminal justice response to cybercrime, as policymakers, legislators, police, prosecutors, magistrates and judges, as the Council of Europe’s capacity building initiatives attest. Yet they also face significant challenges in representation in some parts of the criminal justice system and at senior decision-making levels. This, in turn, undermines the capacity of criminal justice authorities to adequately recognise and understand the different ways that cybercrimes affect women and men, and to prevent, investigate and prosecute the cybercrimes that particularly target women effectively. 

This opening plenary will set the scene for the International Conference by providing an overview of the current state of play of women’s participation in the fight against cybercrime. Drawing on experiences from different regions, it will explore the challenges women face when they seek to play an active role in efforts to combat cybercrime and other crimes involving electronic evidence, and identify opportunities to further promote the role of women in these areas. 

• Moderator: Alexander Seger, Executive Secretary, Cybercrime Convention Committee and Head of Cybercrime Division, Council of Europe 
• Secretariat: Martha Stickings, GLACY+ project, Council of Europe Cybercrime Programme Office