Americas Regional Forum

7 - 9 November 2022

Americas Regional Forum for international cooperation on cybercrime and electronic evidence

As the world evolves towards a new “normal”, the use of and reliance on information technology has become more and more pervasive in society. Reports show that Latin America has very high internet penetration, making it an increasingly attractive region for cybercriminals. Online scams and phishing email schemes have proliferated in Latin America amid the coronavirus pandemic, followed by a sharp increase of ransomware attacks, posing serious threats to citizens, business and governments.

Many countries in Latin America and Caribbean have made it a high-level priority to focus on developing cybercrime laws and policies and adhere to Budapest Convention to facilitate efficient and effective international cooperation between criminal justice authorities, in line with international standards. In such an effort, a major point of attention has been the need to uphold fundamental rights of individuals. Law enforcement officers, prosecutors, magistrates and judges are called to fulfil their respective roles in increasingly complex environments, which require up to date skills and adequate tools, both technical and legal.

In this context, effective international cooperation was never more relevant, backed up by capacity building as key enabler to enhance knowledge, competencies and skills of all the actors involved in combating cybercrime. This also calls for the international and regional organisations that are working in this field, to join forces and exploit to the best, the synergies existing between different programmes to avoid overlap and streamline resources.

The Americas Regional Forum will be an opportunity to assess the progress achieved at policy level in the region and to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and practical experience on current threats and investigation tools. The event will offer the participants a chance to expand their knowledge on the procedures and tools brought by the Second Additional Protocol to the Convention on Cybercrime.

It is expected to build on the results achieved following the 2017 Hemispheric Forum by contributing to:

• • • Sharing experiences among participants about new cybercrime trends and ways to tackle cybercrime at a regional and international level;
    • Promoting the signature and future ratification of the Second Additional Protocol and offering further insights on capacity building needs in relation to the future implementation of the provisions of the Protocol;
    • Facilitating international cooperation between criminal justice authorities of countries in the region, building cyber-capacity and promoting the embracing of international standards in the field.