MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil joins Budapest Convention to fight cybercrime

The Budapest Convention groups 67 countries

Brazilian authorities Wednesday announced that the South American country was joining the so-called Budapest Convention whereby it will be granted faster access to electronic evidence produced under foreign jurisdiction.

A letter of adhesion to the Convention on Cyber Crime, also known as the Budapest Convention, has been submitted to the Strasbourg-based Council of Europe, according to a joint release in Brasilia from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Justice and Public Safety. The measure seeks to bolster international cooperation in combating cybercrime, it was explained.

The Budapest Convention groups 67 countries with which Brazil shares most of the cases of international legal cooperation in progress today and serves as a basis for collaboration against a wide variety of crimes.

The new step is expected to give Brazilian authorities faster access to electronic evidence produced under foreign jurisdiction, which will have a positive impact in terms of criminal convictions for cybercrime offenders.

Fighting this type of illegal activity requires agile means of international cooperation, through which the responsible bodies can request and share the necessary evidence, the Brazilian authorities argued.