Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Assalamualaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh, Peace be upon you all.

On behalf of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izaddin Waddaulah Ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddin Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam and his government, it is my pleasure to join delegations from across the world here today at this historic conference as we embark on a new chapter in the global fight against cybercrime with the signing of the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime.

I take this opportunity to congratulate the Socialist Republic of Vietnam for your excellent stewardship of this initiative which led to the successful adoption of the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime; Strengthening International Cooperation for Combating Certain Crimes Committed by Means of Information and Communications Technology Systems and for the Sharing of Evidence in Electronic Form of Serious Crimes in New York on 24 December 2024.

GLOBAL SITUATION

Brunei Darussalam is honored to be here today expressing our commitment in preserving regional and global peace, security and stability. Much like any other country, Brunei Darussalam is not spared from the continuously evolving
threat of Cybercrime. While the situation is generally under control in Brunei Darussalam, we continue to see an increasing trend in the number of cybercrimes and cyber-attacks over the past two years. At the strategic level, cyber
attackers have made serious attempts to breach the security of our financial institutions, universities and other establishments that have access to sensitive information. At the operational-level, an equally worrying development is the increase in the number of online scamming incidents which threatens the security of our citizens. We noticed the global trend where, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the industrial-scale scam centers generate an estimated US $40 billion in annual profits. An astonishing amount gained through the
deliberate destruction of other’s security, privacy and trust.

BRUNEI DARUSSALAM INITIATIVES

In light of that, under the wise leadership of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izaddin Waddaulah Ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddin Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, the Government of Brunei Darussalam has made significant efforts to strengthen our cybercrime
and cybersecurity efforts through a ‘Whole-ofNation’ and ‘Whole-of-Government’ approach; Our National Security Committee works closely with the National Committee on Cyber Security under the Ministry of Transport and
Infocommunications (MTIC), to coordinate policies and measures to strengthen our cybersecurity including cybercrime. Apart from that, the National Security Committee has also established an inter-agency Task Force on online scams, which aims to coordinate operational efforts to investigate and solve cases.

Whilst trying to build digital resilience for our people as well as ensuring proper digital literacy and responsible online engagement, our relevant agencies such as the Royal Brunei Police Force and Cyber Security Brunei actively
organize awareness programs to educate the public including schools and private sector about the dangers of the cyberspace.

Brunei Darussalam has also taken the significant step of establishing an Anti-Scam Centre which started operations recently in July this year along with an Anti-Scam Helpline that was launched on 30 August 2025. The Anti-Scam
Centre is manned by the Royal Brunei Police Force with the support of the Brunei Darussalam Central Bank, Authority for Infocommunications Technology Industry of Brunei Darussalam (AITI) and other relevant stakeholders including Telecommunications and internet service providers and commercial banks.

ENCOURAGING THE NEED FOR CONTINOUS REGIONAL COOPERATION ESPECIALLY IN TACKLING EMERGING TRENDS

Having said that, Brunei Darussalam recognizes that cybercrime is a rapidly evolving domain and no one country can tackle this threat alone. In this regard, Brunei Darussalam has greatly benefited from our participation with ASEAN in forums such as the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Transnational Crime (AMMTC) and other regional and international platforms, including forums under the United Nations and INTERPOL which have become valuable
platforms for exchanging views and best practices to counter Cybercrime. With this in mind, we welcome a global
cooperation framework against cybercrime and will implement it with robust judicial oversight and proportionality to safeguard rights. Brunei Darussalam believes capacity building efforts are crucial to equip our people with the right skills and framework to handle new and emerging trends in cybercrime such as the use of AI and “deepfakes” in online scams.

To further ensure that Bruneians are instilled with responsible and ethical use to the transformative emergence of Artificial Intelligence, Brunei Darussalam launched the “Guide on AI Governance and Ethics for Brunei Darussalam” April this year. This is to ensure the safe, ethical, and trustworthy adoption of Artificial Intelligence across the nation, further mitigating potential cyber threats associated with AI.

CONCLUSION

To conclude, Brunei Darussalam reaffirms our commitment in combatting cybercrime and looks forward to working together through ASEAN alongside all nations to operationalize this convention and secure the digital future for
all our citizens. Thank You.