With new legislation passing its first reading, the New Zealand government has taken a step towards bolstering the country’s capacity to combat cybercrime.
The goal of the bill, which was submitted by Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith, is to bring New Zealand’s legal system into compliance with the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime, which is the only legally enforceable agreement addressing this problem.
step towards bolstering the country’s capacity to combat cybercrime.
The goal of the bill, which was submitted by Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith, is to bring New Zealand’s legal system into compliance with the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime, which is the only legally enforceable agreement addressing this problem.
New Zealand’s commitment to addressing cybercrime
Citing statistics showing that 11% of New Zealanders experienced financial and psychological hardship as a result of cybercrime and fraud in 2023, Goldsmith underlined the significance of the law.
He pointed out that New Zealand’s ratification of the Budapest Convention shows its dedication to global collaboration in combating cybercrime.
“It will help our law enforcement agencies to protect New Zealanders by providing the tools they need to detect, investigate, and prosecute criminal offences, even when it happens online,” he said.
New Zealand legislation to address cybercrime
The bill’s principal provisions include changes to the Search and Surveillance Act that provide law enforcement the authority to give “preservation directions” to businesses, requiring them to keep data as possible evidence.
To encourage more collaboration with foreign law enforcement in criminal investigations, the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act will also be revised.
To guarantee that cybercrime offences fully conform to international norms, the Crimes Act will also be modified.
Increasing cyber threats in Asia Pacific
These changes occur at a time when cybercrime remains a significant problem for people and companies in New Zealand and throughout the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, underscoring the significance of technological and regulatory safeguards against changing threats.
According to Akamai’s State of the Internet report, 34% of events worldwide in 2023 occurred in the financial services industry, making it the main target for distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) assaults.
The results also showed that phishing is still the most prevalent type of cyberattack, with the largest rates of counterfeit domains and brand impersonation occurring in financial sectors.
According to the research, cybercrime has increased as a result of geopolitical causes like the crisis between Russia and Ukraine, with organisations like REvil and KillNet stepping up their operations.
Application programming interfaces (APIs) are the focus of increasingly complex attacks, which constitute a growing threat to the financial industry. Shadow APIs, or APIs that are not regularly monitored, are particularly dangerous.
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