Update on Cybercrime Treaty

Last month, Denmark signed the Council of Europe Cybercrime Convention. Now
all 15 EU States have signed it, but only two two countries (Albania and
Croatia) have ratified it. The Convention needs five ratifications before
it comes into force.

On 7 November 2002, an additional protocol on racism was adopted by the
Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers on 7 November 2002. Whilst a
number of countries have signed this ‘Additional Protocol to the Convention
on Cybercrime, concerning the criminalisation of acts of a racist and
xenophobic nature, committed through the use of computer systems’, none has
yet ratified it.

The treaty was severely criticised by civil rights groups from Europe and
the United States for giving invasive new surveillance powers to law
enforcement, lacking protections for privacy or other civil liberties, and
having a much wider impact than just the internet.

Full text of the Convention (in English and French -23.11.2001)
http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/EN/WhatYouWant.asp?NT=185

Additional protocol on Racism and Xenophobia (07.11.2002)
http://www.coe.int/T/E/Legal_affairs/Legal_co-operation/Combating_economic_crime/Cybercrime/Racism_on_internet/PC-RX(2002)24E.pdf

ACLU: 8 Reasons the International Cybercrime Treaty Should be Rejected
http://www.treatywatch.org/TreatyProblems.html