Data Encryption and Law Enforcement Services
The Sixth Committee is the primary forum for the consideration of legal questions in the General Assembly. All of the United Nations Member States are entitled to representation on the Sixth Committee as one of the main committees of the General Assembly.
The Committee has a mandate, under Article 13 of the UN Charter, to promote the progress of international law and its development. This includes encouraging the codification of international law, developing new treaties, and to recommend for states to ratify them. The Committee and its function is important to ensure that international law is upheld and is able to be followed by all UN Member States.
The Sixth Committee will explore issues surrounding the rise of data encryption services that can hinder the effective prevention of crime by law enforcement and pose national security risks. These discussions can entail a wide variety of topics from the proliferation of services such as Whatsapp, the data used and maintained by social media platforms such as Facebook, and the very security and accessibility of IT technologies such as the 5G network. Where will the committee draw the line between privacy and law enforcement for the world to follow?
Member States:
- United States of America
- Britain
- France
- Australia
- Canada
- China
- Russia
- Saudi Arabia
- Germany
- Brazil
- India
- Papua New Guinea
- New Zealand
- Switzerland
- Iran
- Japan
- South Korea
- Egypt
- Turkey
- Argentina
- Thailand
- Vietnam
- Iraq
- Pakistan
- Greece
- Ukraine
- Norway
- Angola
- Mali
- Philippines
- Libya
- Israel
BRIEFING PAPER COMING SOON!