UNODC Executive Director: Signing the Hanoi Convention is signing “a secure future”
A new era of cybercrime has arrived. Advances in software and artificial intelligence are reshaping the scope, scale, and sophistication of the threats we face.
Mr. Luong Cuong, President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,
Dear Mr. Secretary-General,
Dear Sirs,
Dear delegates,
Ladies and gentlemen,
I am honored to be here with you to conclude five years of negotiations with a landmark achievement: the signing of the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime.
The journey has been long and challenging – more than 420 hours of formal negotiations and countless hours of informal negotiations, led by UN member states, with contributions from 160 stakeholders from intergovernmental organizations, non-governmental organizations, academia and the private sector.
The result is a resounding statement that multilateralism still works, and that the international community is serious about tackling cybercrime.
I join the Secretary-General in thanking Vietnam for bringing us together to work towards a common global goal, and for hosting the conference in its beautiful capital, Hanoi.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is proud to support Viet Nam in hosting this conference, and we will continue to count on Viet Nam's leadership and cooperation in putting the new Convention into practice.
Ladies and gentlemen,
A new era of cybercrime has arrived. Advances in software and artificial intelligence are reshaping the scope, scale, and sophistication of the threats we face.
Ransomware attacks used to just lock up hard drives; today they can cripple entire supply chains and demand billions of dollars in ransom.
Phishing scams used to be clumsy fake emails or login pages; now they've evolved into sophisticated automated phishing campaigns.
Online scams used to target the inexperienced; now AI can fool anyone into believing they are talking to the police, a bank employee, or even a relative.
At the same time, cryptocurrencies have enabled large-scale anonymous transactions, and cybercrime-as-a-service has allowed any criminal to purchase sophisticated tools for a fee.
All of this is changing the face of organized crime. Different forms of illicit trade are expanding, as goods, money and expertise move more easily in the “dark” of the digital world.
Online sexual exploitation and abuse is on the rise, aided by tools to create, distribute, and monetize this content. The WeProtect Alliance notes that reports of child sexual abuse material increased by 87% between 2019 and 2023. The crime is also increasingly borderless.
A scam hub in Southeast Asia may target victims in Europe, using trafficked labor from multiple regions. A child in Africa may be abused online by criminals across continents, while the content is hosted on a server in North America.
A group of hackers in Europe was able to break into a Latin American bank and withdraw millions of dollars in a matter of milliseconds, using cryptocurrency. The human impact of cybercrime is catastrophic—losing people’s savings, livelihoods, safety, dignity, even their lives. And the financial toll is huge: IBM’s 2024 report found that the average cost of a data breach is nearly $5 million.
We are seeing cybercriminals bring down multinational corporations, wipe out small organizations, and use developing countries as “testing grounds” for new attack technologies.
Ladies and gentlemen,
A new era of cybercrime has arrived – and the world is unprepared. The response is fragmented across countries, with serious gaps in technology and capacity.
That is why the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime marks a paradigm shift, and it is exactly the shift we need.
This new convention fills urgent gaps in the global response to cybercrime, and provides a practical basis for collective action.
Specifically, the Convention provides: Unified legal standards, eliminating “safe zones” for cybercrime while protecting human rights; A global framework for collecting, preserving, exchanging and using electronic evidence between countries; A common cooperation platform for intelligence sharing, judicial assistance and capacity building, open to all countries and compatible with regional mechanisms; Technology-neutral language, focusing on the offence rather than the tool, to help adapt to future threats; A legal basis to criminalise behaviours targeting vulnerable groups – especially women, children and the elderly, such as the distribution of non-consensual intimate images, online child sexual abuse and exploitation, and forms of cyber fraud. Now, more than ever, we must protect people as online predators become more sophisticated.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The UN Convention against Cybercrime is a historic opportunity. To seize this opportunity, we need to achieve two objectives: Ensure the Convention’s early entry into force, as the Secretary-General has called for, by promoting signatures and ratifications by all member states; and Lay the foundations for its full and effective implementation, including through legislation, partnerships and technical capacity. This requires significant political and financial investment, particularly in capacity building support for developing countries.
At the same time, we need to work with the private sector and civil society to maximize the potential of the Convention.
As the Secretary-General has stressed: “No one is safe until everyone is safe” – especially in cyberspace. UNODC is working hard to support these two goals.
We have developed a ratification methodology suitable for different legal systems, and stand ready to assist Member States in the ratification process.
In addition, UNODC will provide specialized technical assistance in implementing the Convention.
With over ten years of experience supporting over 60 countries in preventing, deterring, investigating and prosecuting cybercrime, aligning legislation with international standards, promoting cooperation between countries and the private sector, and raising public awareness of cyber threats, we are well-positioned to accompany you in the coming period.
UNODC will also support discussions over the next two years to develop the Convention's rules of procedure and consider additional protocols.
The road ahead is clear. Now is the time for us to walk together, with faith and determination.
Ladies and gentlemen,
At this conference, you can sign up for a safer future both online and offline – a future where cybercriminals no longer hide in digital shadows or legal loopholes.
I hope you will engage, support and invest in the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime, to make that future a reality./.
