Public consultation on a proposal for New Zealand to join the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime

Overview

The New Zealand Government is considering joining the Council of Europe’s Budapest Convention on Cybercrime (the “Budapest Convention”).  The Budapest Convention aligns countries’ laws on cybercrime, upholds human rights, and makes it easier for the 65 member countries to cooperate on international criminal investigations.

We believe that New Zealand’s laws already largely align with the requirements of the Budapest Convention.  The most significant change required to join would be the creation of a limited data preservation scheme.

We want to understand your views on the potential benefits and risks of New Zealand joining the convention.  Your feedback will support advice to Cabinet later in 2020, where a final decision will be made on whether New Zealand will join the Budapest Convention.

The attached factsheets and consultation document provide useful background information about the proposal.  These documents also explain the Government’s current assessment of the implications of New Zealand joining the Budapest Convention.

Please complete your submission before the end of Friday 11 September 2020.

Consultation documents

Consultation Paper - Budapest Convention on Cybercrime [PDF, 680KB]

Factsheet 1. What is the Budapest Convention [PDF, 143KB]

Factsheet 2. Why is NZ considering joining the Budapest Convention [PDF, 155KB]

Factsheet 3. What is Mutual Assistance [PDF, 119KB]

Factsheet 4. What is a data preservation scheme [PDF, 138KB]

Note: Please provide any written comments in the way which is most convenient for you. You can make your submission through the online tool below, or otherwise by emailing your submission to Budapest@justice.govt.nz.

If you have any questions about the proposal, you can get in touch with the team at Budapest@justice.govt.nz. We will be regularly monitoring this inbox and will do our best to answer your queries.

Depending on the level of interest, we may also hold one or several virtual public meetings to answer questions and receive verbal feedback.  Please get in touch via Budapest@justice.govt.nz if you would like to express interest in attending.  Should any public meetings be arranged, this website will be updated with the relevant information.