A Fine Balance: Mapping Cyber (in)Security in Latin America

This Strategic Paper examines the character and dynamics of cyber-crime and the ways in which it is being addressed in Latin America. A particular focus is on what might be described as “new criminality” emerging in cyberspace – organized criminal hacking, identity theft, advanced credit card fraud and online child exploitation. The Paper draws on a review of the public and grey literature from more than thirty countries and interviews with dozens of experts across the sub-continent to shed light on the present cyber-security and cyber-defence architecture being erected in Latin America. Overall, it finds that Latin America exhibits a heterogeneous landscape when it comes to cyber-crime. And while all countries have witnessed a surge in cyber-crime, threats and responses tend to be clustered in specific countries, such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cost Rica, the Dominican Republic and Mexico, where online populations and internet penetration rates are highest.

VIEW PDF