Cybercrime continues to grow in size, affecting both developed and developing nations. The increase in the use of technology and the growth in internet connectivity around the world have allowed for the development of new technologies that have increased cybercrime. Despite the growing trends in international cybercrime, law enforcement has consistently struggled to keep up. The result is a growing gap between international cybercrime and law enforcement that allows for cybercriminals to operate and have a significant negative impact. Most countries have poor infrastructure and resources that can prevent cybercrimes. The growing trends of cybercrimes have created a new realization among policymakers that have observed the need for better coordination and more funding for various initiatives. This paper analyzes various methods for reducing international cybercrime by focusing on the creation of better policies and coordination among different countries.
Industry Policies
International cybercrime prevention strategies will involve improving and following industry best guidelines and practices. Different organizations have different sizes and different risks, capabilities, and vulnerabilities. Government regulators, industry organizations, and international organizations have provided general frameworks that should be applied to improve the security infrastructure. There is a need to increase the use of the recommended practices for organizations to reduce the chances of becoming victims of cybersecurity attacks. International policies developed to improve the cybersecurity infrastructure include the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the National Institute of Standards (NIST). The GDPR is a comprehensive legislation that rolled out in the year 2018 to protect data privacy in the European Union. The regulations outline what is allowed in the member states, expectations of privacy, and penalties that businesses and organizations are likely to face when they do not comply with the policies (Al-Zaben et al., 2018). NIST was developed in the United States as a resource for cybersecurity professionals. The framework outlines strategies to improve cybersecurity infrastructure. The framework should be applied by organizations to increase their cybersecurity program and risk management practices.
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State Reporting of Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities
International efforts to reduce cybercrime should focus on requiring every government or country to provide an update or reports regarding their cybersecurity vulnerabilities. The UN Group of Government Experts (UN GGE) has been at the forefront in the development of a common approach of how governments should behave in cyberspace. The organization was established in the year 2004 and provided annual reports to show how governments should develop a cyber code of conduct (Henriksen, 2019). There are recommendations that states should adopt to improve ICT activities and develop policies that can further improve the security systems in their respective countries. The report also highlights emerging threats in cybersecurity and the basic principles, rules, and norms for responsible cyber behavior. The UN GGE report should include a mandate where different governments should report on the specific cyber vulnerabilities and the actions to correct them. The result of such reporting is that member states should have better information about how to better protect their security systems.
Improving the Budapest Convention
One of the strategies that should continually be adopted involves the cybercrime conventions. The Budapest Convention on Cybercrime is a convention where fifty-six countries, including the United States, have established and signed regarding the policies to be used to prevent cybercrime. It is the only legally binding treaty that has established standards for international cooperation when responding to cybercrime (Chang, 2020). However, there are some key countries that have not signed for the convention, and there have been issues regarding its effectiveness as it cannot be forcefully enforced. Countries like Russia and China have not joined the convention, and there is a need for them to join. Having major global powers take part in the convention can result in better policies and a wide application of the various policies. The convention needs to be improved to add more signatories, or a new treaty should be created altogether. The conventions should be primarily handled by the United Nations by establishing standards for international cooperation in reducing cybercrime.
Private Sector Development and Public-Private Partnerships
The private sector can engage in various efforts and initiatives to improve cybersecurity efforts. In the past, the private sector has encountered multiple issues when working with international organizations and governments. There have been challenges regarding the lack of trust on both sides and the lack of consistency and clarity regarding the specific legal frameworks that should be adopted. Governments should strive to focus on having public-private partnerships to increase the participation of the private sector in international cybersecurity. There is a need to discuss and address the challenges that the private sector can face in public-private partnerships. Different international organizations have been developed that have strived to enhance such public-private partnerships. For instance, the National Cyber-Forensics and Training Alliance (NCFTA) is an organization in the United States that strives to foster public-private partnerships within the FBI (Kleist, 2018). The organization has been quite effective and has also been a partner in the enforcement of international cyber activity. There is a need for more partnerships and the private sector to increasingly take part in the strategies that will enable them to have an active role in international cybersecurity.
Capacity Building Efforts
Governments should strive to increase their resources to fight and prevent cybercrime through the use of capacity-building efforts. Such efforts will ensure adequate funding is available to tackle security threats that organizations could face, like terrorism. Cyberattacks have grown to be seen as one of the biggest threats that countries and populations are likely to face. The government should strive to ensure that they allocate a budget that can be used towards improving the cybersecurity infrastructure. The provision of resources will also require that the funding be directed to developing nations (Homburger, 2019). Developing countries have in the past lagged behind in terms of infrastructure that can prevent cybersecurity threats. There is a need for international organizations and developed governments to provide more resources to developing countries. The entire security of the international cybersecurity infrastructure is as strong as the weakest link and the weakest defense systems. Law enforcement has been aware of the threat of cybercrimes for over a decade but has taken time to prioritize resources for cybercrimes. Throughout the world, cyber crime-fighting capabilities have been developing as cybercrime threats continue to evolve. Law enforcement can keep up with the threats of cybercrime by providing adequate resources to handle various threats.
International Cybersecurity Training
Cybersecurity training that can reduce the threat of international cybercrimes will involve training and educating governments regarding establishing a strong cybersecurity infrastructure. The biggest vulnerabilities that governments and international organizations face come from their staff and workers. Training government staff and workers ensure that they are equipped with the best strategies to handle different cybersecurity threats. The government can also strive to engage in mass education strategies to inform the public on cybercrimes and strategies to reduce cybersecurity threats. Law enforcement of different countries should also be trained on how to handle different cybersecurity threats. Cyber-dependent crimes have increased significantly over the past decade. Examples of such threats include ransomware, hacking, malware proliferation, phishing emails, and online child abuse. The criminal justice system, such as police, prosecutors, and judges, needs to understand these different types of crimes. The analysis of law enforcement personnel showed a significant percentage of those surveyed did not have the expertise and training on strategies to reduce cybercrime. Apart from law enforcement, many judges and prosecutors in different parts of the world do not have the appropriate skills and knowledge to handle cases dealing with cybercrimes (Losavio et al., 2019). Individuals in the criminal justice system should be trained regarding the tools required to investigate the crimes and how to protect the victims. An improvement in their training will ensure that they are better equipped to carry out investigations and successfully prosecute suspects for specific cybercrimes. The training will be effective by ensuring that the different organizations have an effective, continual, and self-supporting training process.
Technology Resources
International organizations and governments should be equipped with the appropriate technologies to help fight cybercrime. Incorporating technologies can provide a more efficient way to identify relevant cybercrime evidence. Different types of security software have been developed to improve the security infrastructure of most organizations. The government should strive to critically analyze the security systems and provide recommendations regarding the implementation of such software. Financial resources should be allocated towards the development of technological systems that can detect and prevent cybersecurity attacks. For instance, more funding can be allocated towards the development of intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDPSs) to further enhance the security infrastructure.
International Legal Structure
The growing number of international cyberattacks makes it necessary to establish an international law on cybersecurity and have international cyber courts that deal with the prosecution of suspects. The international cyber court could function with different governments and try to solve cyber conflicts. The court will also be involved in solving cybersecurity disputes among different countries. For instance, one country could accuse another of attacking its security systems. The international court would provide qualified experts to hear the case and attempt to verify the accuracy of the given claims. Such a system could be important to solve a conflict like that between the United States and Russia where Russia was accused of interfering with the U.S. elections. The establishment of an international cybersecurity court will also require clear legislation and international laws dealing with cybersecurity. The law may involve different countries signing for the UN convention to fight cybercrime and the establishment of an international code of conduct to be followed by different countries.
Strategic Approach
Governments and international organizations should strive to develop a strategic approach and strategic initiatives to improve cybersecurity initiatives. The approach will involve establishing goals and objectives for various initiatives like capacity building, international coordination, and partnerships. Developing strategic initiatives will ensure that the countries and institutions will have the capacity to realize implement cybersecurity policies. The strategic approach should also put into consideration a continuous monitoring and evaluation architecture that can access how effective the strategic efforts are in meeting the specific benchmarks. Governments should strive to work to develop a feedback strategy to monitor and evaluate systems and assess their success in meeting objectives. While developing a strategic approach can be difficult when several countries, government agencies, and international organizations are involved, it would be necessary in determining the allocation of resources to realize specific goals and objectives. .
The strategic approach will also involve establishing a clear end goal regarding the cybersecurity initiatives. While there has been progress in coordination among different countries, there is a little agreement regarding the end goal to be realized from such coordination. Different countries may have different visions, goals, and objectives regarding the approach to cyberspace, the role of governments in controlling the internet, and various approaches to privacy. Platforms like the UN GGE should be used to create a mutual understanding regarding the main end goal for the cybersecurity program. Establishing a clear end goal will provide greater clarity regarding the specific priorities to be undertaken by the government, the private society, and international organizations. The result will be an increased commitment towards various cybersecurity initiatives and strategies. The development of an end goal could be achieved in a global conference where all the respective parties could suggest their priorities, and develop a consensus regarding the cybersecurity goals.
Coordination for Information Sharing
The trends and tactics of cybercrimes continue to evolve, making it necessary to create a system where cybercrime activities can be shared. Information sharing can be possible through establishing an in-country coordination system where information regarding the priorities, key actors, and cybersecurity strategies can be shared. For instance, the creation of a website that is updated frequently regarding various international cybersecurity threats will enable different governments to be well-informed regarding any new developments in the cybersecurity field. Information sharing will also be critical when conducting international investigations on specific cybercrimes. Sharing any new developments in the investigation of a particular cybersecurity incident will be beneficial in reducing confusion and prevention of duplication efforts.
The sharing of information regarding cybercrime activities and incidences may also create a political will regarding the issue. International organizations should strive to conduct research on different countries regarding the number of cybercrime incidences. The number of successful convictions and arrests can also be identified and the different countries ranked in terms of their approach to cybersecurity. Such a strategy will ensure that different governments have a political commitment to help stop cybercrimes. Governments in the respective countries should also show an initiative of tracking and releasing cybercrime information to the public. The tracking of information and releasing it to the public could help policymakers understand the specific initiatives to develop to address cybersecurity threats and how to allocate resources effectively.
Bottom-Up Approach
A bottom-up approach of enhancing cybersecurity will involve specific countries establishing cybersecurity policies and then proposing those approaches for international organizations. Individual countries and international organizations like the Organization for Security and Cooperation in the EU have developed elaborate views and policies regarding cybersecurity. Different countries have also established alliance groups regarding the expected cybersecurity rules, policies, and standards. For instance, cyber policies have been adequately developed by countries like Russia and the United Kingdom and there has been an alliance among countries like China and Russia. Releasing the drafts of the rules and policies will help different countries and different regions identify common areas of agreement and thus find a way to move forward.
Conclusion
Reducing international cybercrime should focus on developing better policies, coordination efforts, resource allocation, and strategic initiatives. The future of international cybersecurity is largely dependent on coordination efforts among different governments, international organizations, and the private sector. The development of the private sector and public-private partnerships will ensure that there is an improvement in the sharing of knowledge. Capacity building will involve allocating sufficient resources towards cybersecurity initiatives. Additional resources can be allocated to developing countries to ensure that they are also well-equipped on cybersecurity strategies. Training that focuses on law enforcement, judges, and prosecutors will ensure that the criminal justice system can handle various cybercrime effectively. Software technological developments will also improve the overall cybersecurity infrastructure. Implementing the given initiatives will likely lead to improved cybersecurity efforts and the result will be a reduction in international cybercrime.
References
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Chang, L. Y. (2020). Legislative Frameworks Against Cybercrime: The Budapest Convention and Asia. The Palgrave Handbook of International Cybercrime and Cyberdeviance , 327-343.
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