SOCHI, April 16. /TASS/. The development of a universal convention on counteracting the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) for criminal purposes is in its final stages, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin said.

His address to the participants of the 11th Southern Forum on Information Security "Infoforum-Sochi 2024" was read out by Sergey Ryabokon, chief advisor of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department for International Information Security.

"The coordination of a draft of a universal comprehensive international convention on counteracting the use of ICT for criminal purposes is at the end stages within the framework of a relevant special UN committee. We are heading toward developing a similar international agreement in order to prevent and peacefully settle conflicts in the digital sphere. This is about the UN convention on ensuring international information security," he noted.

Infoforum is one of the biggest annual IT events in Russia. This year it is being held in Sochi from April 15 to 18 and is already in its eleventh year. The central subject of the forum is drafting a program to develop digital security technologies through 2030.