UN Convention against Cybercrime (2024)

As of 30 September 2026. Information only, not legal advice – see the disclaimer.

The Convention is the first global treaty on cybercrime negotiated within the United Nations. It was elaborated by an Ad Hoc Committee established by GA resolution 74/247 (2019) and adopted by the General Assembly on 24 December 2024. It requires States Parties to criminalise a set of offences against and by means of ICT systems, provides for procedural powers to obtain electronic evidence, and establishes a framework for international cooperation, including for the collection of evidence in electronic form of serious crimes. It is referred to in debates on the relationship between law enforcement cooperation, State access to data and the protection of human rights online, and on its relationship to the Council of Europe Budapest Convention. Its implementation is to be reviewed by a Conference of the States Parties; the Ad Hoc Committee continues to work on draft rules of procedure for that Conference and on a possible supplementary protocol.

• Art. 4 – Offences established in accordance with other applicable UN conventions and protocols are also to be treated as criminal offences when committed through the use of ICT systems.
• Art. 6 – Respect for human rights: implementation must be consistent with obligations under international human rights law, and nothing in the Convention is to be interpreted as permitting suppression of human rights or fundamental freedoms.
• Arts 7–17 – Criminalisation, including illegal access, illegal interception, interference with electronic data and with ICT systems, misuse of devices, ICT-related forgery, theft and fraud, offences related to online child sexual abuse material and solicitation, non-consensual dissemination of intimate images, and laundering of proceeds of crime.
• Art. 24 – Conditions and safeguards for procedural powers, to be subject to domestic law in line with international human rights obligations, including the principle of proportionality.
• Arts 25–30 – Procedural measures, including expedited preservation of stored data, production orders, search and seizure, real-time collection of traffic data and interception of content data.
• Art. 35 – International cooperation extends to collecting evidence in electronic form of any serious crime (defined by reference to a maximum penalty of at least four years' deprivation of liberty).
• Arts 40–41, 47 – Mutual legal assistance, a 24/7 network and law enforcement cooperation.
• Art. 65 – Entry into force (see above).

The Convention concerns criminal justice and international law enforcement cooperation; it does not address State conduct in cyberspace under international law on the use of force (see ict_norms). During negotiation and adoption, some States and a number of human rights organisations and industry groups raised concerns about the breadth of international cooperation for serious crimes and the adequacy of the safeguards in Art. 24; other States regarded the text as a balanced basis for global cooperation. The European Union made a declaration in connection with its signature (EEAS).

• 2024-12-24: Adopted by the UN General Assembly, resolution 79/243 (UNODC).
• 2025-10-25/26: Signing ceremony in Hanoi; 71 States and the European Union signed (UN Office of Legal Affairs).
• 2026-02-04: Qatar deposits the first instrument of ratification, with reservations to Arts 14–16 and a declaration that it does not consider itself bound by Art. 63(2) (dispute settlement) (depositary notification C.N.83.2026.TREATIES-XVIII.16).
• 2026-04-15 and 2026-04-17: Azerbaijan and Viet Nam deposit instruments of ratification (UN Treaty Collection, Chapter XVIII-16).
• 2026-03 to 2026-09: Further signatures at UN Headquarters, including Tajikistan (17 March 2026), Germany (1 June 2026), Canada (16 July 2026) and Panama (30 July 2026), and a number of States in September 2026 (depositary notifications; UN Treaty Collection).
• 2026-12-31: Scheduled end of the period for signature at UN Headquarters (UN Office of Legal Affairs).

• budapest
• ict_norms
• iccpr
• cjeu_schrems2

• UNODC – United Nations Convention against Cybercrime, accessed 2026-09-27
• UN Office of Legal Affairs – The United Nations Convention against Cybercrime opens for signature in Hanoi, accessed 2026-09-27
• UN Treaty Collection – Status, Chapter XVIII-16, accessed 2026-09-30
• UN Treaty Collection – Multilateral Treaties Deposited with the Secretary-General, Chapter XVIII-16 (status, PDF), accessed 2026-09-30
• Depositary notification C.N.83.2026 – Qatar: ratification, accessed 2026-09-30
• Depositary notification C.N.182.2026 – Germany: signature, accessed 2026-09-30
• Depositary notification C.N.280.2026 – Canada: signature, accessed 2026-09-30
• Depositary notification C.N.290.2026 – Panama: signature, accessed 2026-09-30
• Council of the EU – EU to sign UN Convention on cybercrime (13 October 2025), accessed 2026-09-27
• EEAS – Declaration, UN Convention against Cybercrime, accessed 2026-09-27

• 2026-09-27: Entry created (draft).
• 2026-09-30: Entry reviewed and finalised.