DIGITAL

Cybersecurity. From April 3 to 6, the Security Forum of the Americas was held at the headquarters of the Latin American and Caribbean Parliament (PARLATINO) in Panama City. At the end of the forum, a work agenda was established in pursuit of updating the PARLATINO model law on cybercrime, which dates back to 2013. The new text will seek to include the creation of an authority to regulate cybersecurity, as well as the classification of new crimes such as identity theft. The idea will be to start working on the new text in the second half of 2022. 

The reform of the model law on cybersecurity will focus on including in the official education curricula of Latin American countries topics related to cybersecurity at an early age. It will also harmonize the taxonomy of judicial qualification at the regional level and criminalize cyber identity theft. As part of its development, a common diagnosis will be carried out at regional level on the state of cybersecurity and cybercrimes committed. 

The Argentine senator and president of Parlatino, Silvia Giacoppo (Juntos por el Cambio – Opposition), pointed out that “we are working on joint initiatives because in a third part of Latin American countries there is no legal framework against cybercrime and only five countries in the region have adhered to the Budapest Convention”. The director of the Regional Crime Stoppers Office, Alejo Campos, reported that “cybercrime has increased by 600% with the Covid-19 pandemic and annual losses due to this scourge are estimated at 10.5 trillion dollars a year”. 

Next steps

At the end of the forum, the participating parliamentarians agreed to reform the model law on cybersecurity after the opening for signature of the Second Additional Protocol to the Budapest Convention, which will open on May 12, 2022. The model law is neither mandatory nor binding, but will serve as a guide so that each country in the region that wants to regulate the matter has a starting point. 

Opportunity for engagement

Once the model law is enacted, McDonald’s will be able to influence the regulatory process of PARLATINO member states that update their regulations according to the new standard. McDonald’s will be able to participate in the public hearings and committee sessions of the national congresses that will be opened for the private sector to present its views.