VLADIVOSTOK. Sept 3 (Interfax) - The number of crimes committed using telecommunications technologies has increased dramatically in Russia over the past five years and now reaches 500,000, Russian Deputy Prosecutor General Pyotr Gorodov said.
"The number of crimes using information and telecommunications technologies accounted for just two percent of all crimes in Russia literally five years ago. Now, one out of every four crimes is committed using information and telecommunications technologies, and that number reaches 500,000 on average," Gorodov said at the Eastern Economic Forum.
"There is a clear transformation going on from simple phone fraud to serious cyberattacks on critical infrastructure," he said.
Even the current increase in illegal narcotics turnover is due to an increase in the number of instances of their contactless sale for cryptocurrency, for example, Gorodov said.
"In particular, the situation is complicated by transborder crimes associated with cybercrime. The criminal is in one country, the aggrieved person is in another one, and the server is in a third jurisdiction," he said.
A comprehensive convention to fight cybercrime can help solve these problems, Gorodov said. A standard draft of this convention was prepared by Russia and sent to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in late July, he said.
The document has a number of advantages, as it introduces new elements of crimes and takes into account new challenges and threats, Gorodov said.
"In particular, we're talking about illegal drug trafficking, fake medical products, and crimes against minors," he said.
The president is also considerably broadening the possibilities for international cooperation in the sphere of criminal law, the possibilities for identifying, locating, seizing, confiscating, and returning criminal assets.
"It's our real contribution to our common cause. We hope this draft convention will be supported by many countries and will become a good, effective instrument in combating cyberthreats," Gorodov said.