Organised Crime in Europe: The Threat of Cybercrime - Situation Report 2004
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Council of EuropeOrganised Crime in Europe: The Threat of Cybercrime - Situation Report 2004
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Council of EuropePreface
Organised crime has been a major threat to European societies for decades,
and – unfortunately – it is likely to remain a major threat in the future.
While the face of organised crime may keep changing in the context of
globalisation, technological transformation and European integration, its
basic impact remains the same: it undermines democracy, human rights and
the rule of law, which are the values on which Europe is based.
The Council of Europe has taken on this challenge by establishing common
standards, by carrying out programmes to strengthen the capacity of
member states to fight such crime, by documenting good practice and by
preparing annual reports on the current situation.
The 2004 report helps member states to ensure that counter-measures are
based on a thorough knowledge of the situation. Economic crime, drugs and
the smuggling and trafficking in human beings are the main issues, while
money represents the common denominator of organised criminal activities.
New treaties on money laundering and trafficking in human beings are
under preparation, and their early adoption and implementation by member
states is of utmost importance.
The topical chapter on the threat of cybercrime shows that, while
information and communication technologies provide states with
unprecedented opportunities, states also become vulnerable, and this
vulnerability is exploited by criminals, not only in Europe but globally. The
report thus makes a strong case for the widest possible geographical
implementation of the Council of Europe’s Convention on Cybercrime and
its Protocol on Racism and Xenophobia. I should like to take this
opportunity to thank Professor Ulrich Sieber and his colleagues from the
Max Planck Institute for Foreign and International Criminal Law in Freiburg
and the University of Munich who prepared the chapter on the threat of
cybercrime.
In view of the 3rd Summit of Heads of State and Government in May 2005, I
believe that this publication is very timely and I am confident that it will
provide a useful basis for the Council of Europe’s work for the coming years.
Terry Davis
Secretary General of the Council of Europe
Strasbourg, February 2005
