CyberLaw Blog

Archive for the ‘CoE’ Category

OECD ministerial meeting in Seoul, South Korea
Council of Europe calls upon governments to sign up to its Cybercrime Convention

Strasbourg, 12.06.2008 - Europe’s primary human rights watchdog, the Council of Europe, will participate in the OECD ministerial meeting on the Future of the Internet Economy in Seoul, South Korea, from 17-18 June. At the meeting, Deputy Secretary General Maud de Boer-Buquicchio, will encourage governments to accede to the Council of Europe’s Convention on Cybercrime - the only internationally binding instrument against cybercrime.

“Any successful campaign against cybercrime will have to be as global as cybercrime itself. The Council of Europe Convention provides the platform for such global co-operation, and this is why other countries should join as soon as possible. From the outset, the Convention was conceived as a global instrument. It is not only a European treaty, it is a treaty drafted in Europe to serve the world,” said Mrs de Boer-Buquicchio, who will address the round table on “Building Confidence” on 18 June.

The Deputy Secretary General will also have bilateral meetings with the South Korean Vice-Minister of Justice, Sung-woo Moon, and the Deputy Secretary General of the OECD, Pier Carlo Padoan.

Notes
* The Convention on Cybercrime has been signed by a total of 44 countries and is a source of inspiration for many others looking to amend their legislation, such as Argentina, Brazil, Columbia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and the Philippines.

* On 3 April, the Council of Europe adopted guidelines to help law enforcement bodies and Internet service providers improve cooperation on the investigation of cybercrime and fight web-based crimes such as child pornography, identity theft and other forms of fraud, as well as denial of service attacks (see www.coe.int/cybercrime).

* The recently-adopted Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse also offers states a valuable new tool for preventing and combating every kind of violation of children’s fundamental rights, including grooming (the manipulation of children by adults online for sexual purposes).

* The Council of Europe will contribute to the next meeting of the United Nations Internet Governance Forum to be held in Hyderabad (India) in December 2008.

Further information on the Council of Europe’s activities is available at www.coe.int

For more information on the OECD meeting, visit www.oecd.org/FutureInternet or www.OECDMinisterialSeoul2008.org.

Viewpoints of the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights: ‘Strong data protection rules are needed to prevent the emergence of a surveillance society’

[26/05/08] Surveillance technology is developing with breath-taking speed. This creates new instruments in the struggle against terrorism and organised crime, but also raises fundamental questions on the right to privacy for everyone. Individuals should be protected from intrusions into their private life and from the improper collecting, storing, sharing and use of data about them. Terrorism and organised crime must be combated - but not with means which undermine basic human rights.

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CoE Press Release: Towards a code of good practice on public participation, access to information and transparency in Internet governance

Strasbourg, 22.05.2008 - The Council of Europe, the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the Association for Progressive Communications will present a report on the concept and possible scope of a code of good practice on participation, access to information and transparency in Internet Governance, to be discussed at an open stakeholder consultation on Friday 23 May in Geneva.

The Code would ensure that all bodies which play a role in governing the Internet commit to transparency, public participation and access to information in their activities. The discussions will lay the groundwork for concrete recommendations at the 3rd United Nations Internet Governance Forum (3-6 December 2008, Hyderabad, India) to which the Council of Europe will make a significant contribution.

The report draws on the principles of the World Summit on the Information Society and the experience of the UNECE Aarhus Convention (which has established enforceable mechanisms for information and participation on environmental issues within Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia). It is divided into three parts: part 1 describes the WSIS principles and the Aarhus Convention, and considers similarities and differences between the environmental and internet governance domains; part 2 explores some of the challenges involved in developing what might become an agreed information and participation approach in Internet governance; and part 3 suggests a process for developing these ideas ahead of the Hyderabad meeting.

The consultation will take place from 2 to 5 pm on Friday 23 May at the International Telecommunications Union Headquarters (Room C2).

The report is available at www.unece.org/env/pp/related.htm