Reference to the competence and specialization of authorities for the prosecution of perpetrators of high-tech criminal offenses

With the development of technology, especially the emergence and expansion of the internet over the past two decades, many traditional crimes have acquired new methods and means of execution, such as the use of computers, mobile phones, or other devices. In response to these new ways of committing crimes, the international community, within the framework of the Council of Europe, adopted the Budapest Convention in 2001, specifically addressing cybercrime. After ratifying the convention, the domestic legislator passed the Law on the Organization and Competencies of State Bodies for the Fight against High-Tech Crime, incorporating legal provisions from the convention. This law has not been significantly changed or amended since its adoption. However, the provisions in this law, especially in terms of jurisdiction, have proven to be inadequate and overly broad. The wide range of criminal offenses covered by this law has made it relatively ineffective and has overburdened the prosecutor’s office responsible for prosecuting high-tech criminals. Moreover, the approach taken by the legislator in 2005, which concentrated jurisdiction in the High Public Prosecutor’s Office and the High Court in Belgrade, is no longer justifiable in today’s age of widespread technology, internet access, and social networks. This paper aims to provide a brief overview of the Budapest Convention, which served as the foundation for the adoption of national regulations, and to highlight the shortcomings and unsustainability of the legal solutions proposed by the domestic legislator when national regulations in this field were established in 2005.