Law enforcers and legal experts in the Caribbean are now better equipped to combat cyber criminals, thanks to a Commonwealth workshop.
A four-day ‘Train the Trainers’ session to increase understanding around cybercrime and electronic evidence has been held in Barbados.
The workshop was a collaboration between the Commonwealth and the Caribbean Community Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (CARICOM IMPACS).
It was funded by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office as part of the implementation of the Caribbean Regional Cybersecurity/Crime Action Plan.
The aim was to equip participants from various Commonwealth Caribbean countries with skills and knowledge of electronic evidence required to fulfil their roles in cybercrime and cyber-enabled cases.
Attendees included trainers from the three major law schools in the Caribbean, the police, officers of departments of public prosecution, lawyers, officers of the regional security systems, parliamentary counsel, digital forensic examiners and information and communications technology officers.
The workshop focused on the handling, presentation and admissibility requirements of electronic evidence, and provided trainers with the tools to embed the learning in their respective jurisdictions.
Materials produced by the Commonwealth, including a Good Practice Guide for Digital Evidence: An Introductory Guide for Law Enforcement Officer, Prosecutors, Judges, were given out as consultants took participants through the training exercise.
The UK High Commissioner to Barbados and Eastern Caribbean, Janet Douglas, addressed the opening of the workshop.
Matthew Moorhead, acting head of the Commonwealth Office of Civil and Criminal Justice Reform )OCCJR), said the 40-plus participants would now return to law enforcement agencies, courtrooms, and law schools across the Caribbean ready to train colleagues to combat cybercrime and handle electronic evidence.
He added: “We are proud to be leading this important programme of work.
“Cybercrime is an increasing menace in the digital age, causing financial damage running into billions of dollars and having many other serious consequences.”
Michael Jameison, one of the Commonwealth consultants delivering the training, said: “The training is a means of building and strengthening capacity, to enable the participants to train their colleagues in their respective countries, thus leaving a lasting legacy and prepare them for the challenges of the 21st century.”
The Good Practice Guide for Digital Evidence will be available on the Commonwealth website soon.
The Commonwealth’s cyber capability team will continue to work with CARICOM-IMPACS to support the regional body in effectively using the guide as a toolkit in member countries and delivering digital evidence training to institutes and agencies.
