The United States has endorsed the gist of a controversial European drive to tighten cybercrime laws over the protests of privacy, civil liberties and human rights advocates. The central provisions of the 41-nation Council of Europe's latest draft convention "are consistent . . .
The United States has endorsed the gist of a controversial European drive to tighten cybercrime laws over the protests of privacy, civil liberties and human rights advocates. The central provisions of the 41-nation Council of Europe's latest draft convention "are consistent with the existing framework of U.S. law and procedure," the Justice Department said in a Friday posting on its cybercrime Web site.

At issue is the first multilateral pact drafted specifically to deal with the cross-border nature of much computer-related crime.

When ready, it would be opened for signature worldwide in an effort to slash the procedural and jurisdictional obstacles that law enforcers say play into the hands of criminals operating through the Internet.