Cybercrime Legislation in the Netherlands

Abstract:     
The Netherlands has had extensive cybercrime legislation since the early 1990s. Particularly in the field of ICT-related investigation powers, the Netherlands has been a forerunner. Since the first Dutch Computer Crime Act of 1993, numerous changes have taken place to meet the ongoing developments in cybercrime. Moreover, a major revision is on its way to update the law and to implement the Council of Europe's Cybercrime Convention (CCC), which the Netherlands signed on 23 November 2001. This article presents an overview of Dutch cybercrime legislation as of August 2005, starting with the provisions in substantive laws that criminalize cybercrime. Next, cyber-related investigation powers are described. Throughout, the current state of the law is explained, including jurisprudence that illustrates or interprets and refines the legal provisions, and pending proposals for changing the law are indicated.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 12

Keywords: cybercrime, computer crime, legislation, Netherlands, substantive law, procedural law

JEL Classification: K14, K42, O38

Accepted Paper Series