The United Nations draft convention against cybercrime in the Canadian context: a purposive approach

Following three years of negotiation, the United Nations approved the final draft of the Convention Against Cybercrime in late 2024. Canada is an active member of the UN and played a participatory role in the creation of the Convention. Cybercrime increased in Canada at the turn of the millennium and continued into the Covid-19 pandemic; some scholars argue that current policies unjustly limit Canadian rights under existing cybersecurity threats. This research examined the context of cybercrime in Canada and contrasted the criminal definitions in the Convention with the cyber practices in Canada and other Member States (China, Egypt, India, North Korea, and Russia). The purposive approach, a tool in the adjudication of Charter cases in Canada, was used to facilitate an interpretation of the Convention that is sensitive to current conditions and flexible enough to support future applications. A contextual analysis was used to examine current cybercrime conditions and a textual analysis compared the definitions in Article 2-21 to Canadian law. Few concerns were noted for Canadians or those in Canada. Possible risks to Canada's national security and the wellness of those outside Canada were identified, especially in regard to human rights and fundamental freedoms. Canada will likely accept the Convention in late 2026. It is recommended that regulatory safeguards are enacted to ensure the security of Canadian data in collaborative cybercrime investigations with UN Member States.