OSCE cyber crime initiatives in Central Asia: results of the first stage

The OSCE conference was held in Vienna on June 12, 2024, dedicated to the results of the first stage of the project to combat cybercrime in Central Asia, Kazinform News Agency correspondent reports, citing Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan and OSCE.

This project aims to strengthen the capacities of the five OSCE participating States in Central Asia, namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, to sustainably educate and train their police officers and prosecutors on combating cybercrime in a manner that is consistent with OSCE commitments, relevant international standards and international human rights obligations. It is a first such comprehensive regional capacity-building initiative in Central Asia.

The event was attended by heads of educational institutions in the law enforcement field from Central Asian countries. The Kazakhstsan delegation included representatives of the general prosecutor's office, the ministry of internal affairs, the academy of law enforcement agencies under the general prosecutor's office of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Almaty academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan named after Makan Esbulatov.

The conference discussed the achievements of the first stage of the project and plans for the future, as well as current trends and challenges in the fight against cybercrime.

The first phase includes regional training activities that combine a training-of-trainers program with cybercrime-related thematic courses. The thematic courses cover the following topics: handling digital evidence by first responders, investigating cryptocurrencies and the Dark Web, online and open-source intelligence investigations, and introduction to open-source computer forensics. In addition, the project donated to each beneficiary country the IT equipment required for one new computer classroom to be used for national training activities.

Participants emphasized the importance of international cooperation to effectively respond to cybercrime and noted the need to constantly improve methods of combating and adapting to new cyber threats.

They expressed their readiness to continue cooperation within the framework of the second stage of the project with an emphasis on training and advanced training of law enforcement officers.

In the second phase, the project replicates at the national level the thematic training courses delivered regionally under the first phase. The courses are organized in close co-operation with law enforcement educational institutions in each beneficiary country and the content is adjusted to the respective national context and needs. The courses take place in the new classrooms donated through the project.

The third phase includes further national training activities, and the development of foundational training curricula and materials to be used by the law enforcement educational institutions in their future courses and seminars.

In addition to the various training activities, the project also includes several elements to strengthen regional co-ordination and co-operation between OSCE participating States in Central Asia. These include regional co-ordination meetings, workshops, and a concluding conference.