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UNODC Supports the Fight against Cybercrime in El Salvador

On 25 May 2015 in San Salvador, the UNODC Regional Representative for Central America and the Caribbean in Panama (UNODC ROPAN), Mr. Amado Philip de Andrés, and the General Director of the National Civil Police of El Salvador (PNC), Commissioner Mauricio Ramírez Landaverde, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the prevention and fight against cybercrime.

Since 2014 UNODC ROPAN, through the Global Programme on Cybercrime, has been working in coordination with different institutions of the Salvadoran Government, particularly with PNC through the Sub-directorate of Investigations, in strengthening national capacities to prevent and fight cybercrime. The signing of this MoU will help to strengthen and amplify the work areas on cybercrime:

  1. Capacity building;
  2. Prevention;
  3. Cooperation. 

Cybercrime includes many offenses, such as "offenses against the confidentiality, integrity and accessibility of computer systems and data" (i.e. illegal access, interception, acquisition or interference of computer systems and data); "computer related acts for personal or financial gain or harm" (i.e. phishing, harassment, copyright-related crimes, etc.); and "computer content-related act" for example child pornography.

In El Salvador, cybercrime is mostly reflected in illegal dissemination of information, sexual harassment and crimes against children facilitated by internet. In this sense, this MoU, manifests El Salvador's compromise and effort to keep ahead in the knowledge of phenomena that represent the most significant threats to its citizens.

The official signing ceremony was also attended by Mrs. Nayelly Loya Marín, UNODC ROPAN Country Office Manager for El Salvador and Belize, and Mr. Augusto Lavieri, from UNODC Panama; as well as El Salvadorian authorities including Commissioner Juan Carlos Martínez Marín, PNC Sub-Director of Investigations and Mr. Julio Arriaza González, Director of the Defense of the Interests of Society, from the Attorney General's Office.

This project has the financial support of the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) of the US Embassy in El Salvador.