On Monday 18 December, the European Union’s Judicial Cooperation Unit (Eurojust), the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) and the European Judicial Network in civil and commercial matters (EJN) published the 2023 edition of the SIRIUS report on the state of electronic evidence in the European Union.
SIRIUS is an EU-funded project that helps police and judicial authorities access cross-border electronic evidence in the context of criminal investigations and proceedings.
The report highlights the growing importance of social networking platforms, messaging applications and cryptocurrency exchanges in criminal investigations. It highlights persistent challenges: the need for in-depth training for law enforcement officers, time-consuming access to data from foreign providers, and difficulties for service providers in authenticating requests.
The EU legislative package on electronic evidence, adopted in summer 2023 (see EUROPE 13200/7), plays a crucial role in enabling competent authorities to issue orders directly to service providers.
This initiative aims to simplify cross-border legal proceedings and clarify cooperation between authorities and service providers.
In addition, the second additional protocol to the Budapest Convention and the European law on digital services provide additional tools for more effective cooperation.
To overcome the challenges identified, the SIRIUS report proposes a strategic roadmap, emphasising capacity building and mutual trust between law enforcement and judicial authorities. The aim is to create a safer digital environment in the EU and to ensure effective and efficient prosecution.
In 5 years, the SIRIUS project has provided significant support to around 7,500 law enforcement officers and 500 judicial authorities in 47 countries.
Its achievements include the development of specific guidelines, legal reviews, technical tools and the training of thousands of members of law enforcement and the judiciary.
Read the report: https://aeur.eu/f/a6m (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)