Cybercrime expert shares knowledge at the UN in Vienna
The University of Huddersfield’s expertise in innovative research around tackling cybercrime was given a global audience when Dr Camilo Tamayo Gomez recently presented his research to the UN in Vienna.
A team of Masters students also visited the UN complex in the Austrian capital with Dr Tamayo Gomez to learn more about cybercrime, the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) and nuclear security.
The UN’s Resolution 74/247, set up in December 2019, began a process where experts will help the UN work towards an international treaty to combat the growing problem of cybercrime.
Dr Tamayo Gomez, Senior Lecturer in Criminology and Course Leader of the MSc in Criminology and International Security, is a member of the multi-organisational committee comprised of scholars and organisations that will work towards the treaty.
Discover more about the Criminology and International Security MSc at the University of Huddersfield
He presented his research and answered questions on exploring citizen-led and 'from below' approaches to cybercrime prevention when addressing the general ad hoc committee assembly at the UN's Vienna HQ.
“From a traditional approach, combating cybercrime relies on law enforcement agencies and government-led initiatives, representing narratives, discourses, and practices that exist primarily to support the needs of the state,” says Dr Tamayo Gomez. “Nevertheless, evidence suggests that strategies and approaches to tackle cybercrime are usually driven by the needs of the private sector.
“A citizen-led, ‘from below’ approach means creating preventative measures and an operational framework to explore specific approaches to tackle cybercrime where civil society, social movements, grassroots organisations, and victims are addressed as subjects in both temporal and normative aspects.
Dr Camilo Tamayo Gomez
Senior Lecturer in Criminology
“The meeting in Vienna was an invaluable opportunity not only to introduce some ideas on how to tackle cybercrime to UN state members and experts from around the world, but also to showcase how our university is making a difference to this vital global debate."
Showcasing Huddersfield’s cybercrime expertise to a global audience
“In addition, our students also had a chance to see at first-hand how international policy is shaped at the heart of an important international organisation. Learning from experts online is fine up to a point, but for the students to have the opportunity to hear from and speak to these people in person, as well as visit a facility like the UN, can only be a good thing."
Watch the Dr Tamayo Gomez address the session on UN TV - scroll to around 40 minutes in.
Criminology and International Security Master’s student Hafsah Hussain said, “The visit to the UN was an eye-opening experience that only a few people are lucky enough to enjoy. The information we learnt whilst at the UN allowed me and my classmates to gain an insight of the workplace environment and what the jobs consist of there. It also gave us an insight to how the UN has an impact on the world around us.”
Dr Tamayo Gomez adds that, “We are due to participate in the next general sessions and Intersessional consultations at the UN in Vienna and New York during 2023. The aim of the UN is to finalise the draft text of the cybercrime convention in December to present for consideration and adoption by the General Assembly at its seventy-eighth session, in 2024.
“Without a doubt, this is a relevant example of the impact of the research conducted at the University of Huddersfield contributing to the creation of UN conventions to tackle global problems.”
The visit to the UN was supported by the International Collaboration Fund, a fund created by the University to support research partnerships with a highly ranked institution. This fund is supporting a wide range of activities and interventions, encouraging researchers at the university to create sustainable relationships with other academic centres overseas.