The online Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Cybercrime, Cybersecurity and International Law aims at training participants in international law and applied practices to investigate and combat malicious cyber activities, as well as at providing them with in-depth knowledge of existing cybercrime prevention strategies at various levels, with a focus on the international dimensions of cybercrime and cybersecurity.
The LL.M. adopts a holistic and multifaceted approach that aims at building the capacity of participants in all areas and disciplines related to cybercrime and cybersecurity related to the law, such as: criminology and social sciences, victimology, psychology, economics, organizational sciences, and computer science.
Students will be equipped with knowledge of the main trends on cybercrimes with a focus on the profiles of perpetrators and victims, the most-up-to-date intelligence operations, and the methods and analytical tools implemented to continuously understand, adapt, and respond to cybercrime.
The LL.M. is designed for university graduates and professionals seeking to acquire the interdisciplinary skills necessary to analyse, prevent, investigate and counter cybercrime, with a particular focus to the international context. Final objective of the LL.M. is to build the capacities of professionals to contribute to the protection of communities, institutions, and businesses.
The LL.M. is carried out fully online, and it is complemented by a final 2-week optional series of workshops taking place at the United Nations Campus in Turin in 2024. The LL.M. is idea for those wishing to pursue a Master’s degree by engaging in flexible learning arrangements from where they work at any time.
Depending on each student’s background and interest, the programme is functional for careers as:
- Prosecutors and law enforcement officials dealing with cybercrime investigation and judicial cooperation
- (International) cybercrime lawyers
- Transnational cybercrime analysts
- Researchers investigating transnational cybercrime in public and private research institutions
- Officials from international organizations working on cybercrime and relevant policies
- Cyber risk management analysts and business continuity professionals in international industries
Through a combination of recorded videos, live webinars, self-study material and readings, selected participants will acquire in-depth knowledge on the theoretical and practical aspects related to cybercrime, cyber organized crime, cyberterrorism and terrorist use of internet, cyberwarfare, AI and cybercrime, hate crimes online, and online counterfeiting.
More specifically the curriculum will focus on:
- International legal framework on cybercrime
- International law applicable to cyber warfare
- Comparative criminal law on cybercrime
- International police and judicial cooperation in cybercrime matters
- Hacking by law enforcement and related legal frameworks
- Basics of digital forensics for public and private investigations
- Basics of image forensics for public and private investigations
- Software security (Introduction to)
- Open-source intelligence and cybercrime
- New perspective in cybercrime: from AI to the metaverse and the virtual reality
- Use of algorithms and AI for the investigation and the criminal trial
- Use of AI for prevention
- Risk management and cybersecurity
- Cybersecurity governance and crisis management in international companies
- Cybersecurity social engineering solutions
- Public-private partnerships against cybercrime
- Cybercrime prevention
The academic curriculum of the Master’s programme is divided into two phases:
- Online phase: 16 October 2023 – 24 October 2024.
- In-person workshops (optional): 4 – 15 November 2024.
The final graduation project will consist of a paper to be submitted after having completed all courses.
Upon successful completion of the programme, students will be awarded an LL.M. degree officially issued by UPEACE.
Structure, content and methodology
The LL.M. is characterized by an interdisciplinary academic strategy that integrates theory and practice, favours active exchange of ideas, and furthers the comparative and critical thinking skills of the students.
The academic curriculum of the programme unfolds in two phases:
During the Online phase (16 October 2023 – 24 October 2024), participants will have access to the e-learning platform of the LL.M. Programme, on which, in addition to self-study, they will have to attend webinars, carry out group projects and other interactive activities with the support of a tutor.
Each block of three weeks will be composed of 2 modules. Participants will have to carry out all activities foreseen for the module but with the flexibility to organize the workload to suit their own schedules with asynchronous forums and recordings.
Material and activities for each module of three weeks will be organized as follows:
- Required and optional readings for each module will be uploaded on the platform and opened up for access at the beginning of each week. Participants can complete the readings at any time during the week;
- Each module will have two pre-recorded lectures and one live webinar. Pre-recorded lectures corresponding to two of the three weeks in each module will be uploaded on the e-learning platform at the beginning of each week. Students can watch the pre-recorded lectures at any time during the week. There will be a live webinar corresponding with one of the three weeks for students to interact synchronously with the professors and among each other. The date and time for these live webinars will differ from module to module. These webinars will be recorded and uploaded on the platform for any students who are unable to join live due to justified work, health or travel related constraints;
- There will be one discussion forum on the platform every week where the instructor will post a question and students will be required to respond to the instructor and to each other. Students can respond to the discussion question anytime during the week.
At the end of each module a test (such as a quiz or a case study analysis) will take place to assess the knowledge on the topics of the module.
Modules envisage 13 to 15 hours per week of self-study of which 5 hours are devoted to the interactive materials (webinars or recordings, forums or other tools).
The optional in-person workshops (4 – 15 November 2024), will consist in 2-week full time activities held at the UN Campus in Turin (Italy), where will additionally be tutored by a faculty advisor who will support them in the elaboration of the final graduation project.
The workshops are held in the unparalleled setting of the United Nations Campus. The Campus is located on 10 hectares of riverside parkland and hosts other national and international organizations such as the ITC-ILO and UNSSC. Under regular circumstances, it annually runs more than 450 programmes and projects involving approximately 11,000 people from over 180 countries, also offering to participants leisure, dining, and sports facilities.
Some of the classes delivered during this phase will also be offered online, along with dedicated training sessions, for those who are not able to join. The attendance in-person of the workshops is not compulsory. All students (both attending in-person and online) will receive 4 UPEACE credits upon completion of the workshops.
The submission of the final graduation project is compulsory, and its grade will count 6 university credits.
In order to be awarded the final Master of Laws Degree worth 42 UPEACE credits (equivalent to 42 US credits/63 ECTS), students need to complete all activities and foreseen exams. Attendance and participation in activities will be considered towards the final assessment of student’s performance.
Career opportunities
The LL.M. aims to build the capacities of interdisciplinary experts who will be able to communicate at all levels with all fields related to cybersecurity, to understand technical issues, to combine the understanding of the problems with technical and non-technical solutions, drawing also on information and communication from technology specialists.
During the Master, participants will interact with lawyers, law enforcement agents and prosecutors, officials of international organizations and industry professionals who deal with cybercrime and cybersecurity in their daily work, providing an operational, case-based approach that addresses real-world problems.
With these considerations in mind, the LL.M. Degree will enable participants to have the required knowledge and skills to engage, or further develop, a professional career as:
- Prosecutors and law enforcement officials dealing with cybercrime investigation and judicial cooperation
- (International) cybercrime lawyers
- Transnational cybercrime analysts
- Researchers investigating transnational cybercrime in public and private research institutions
- Officials from international organizations working on cybercrime and cybercrime policy
- Cyber risk management analysts and business continuity professionals in international industries
LL.M. Office Contacts
E-mail: unicri.llmcyber@un.org
Tel.: (+39) 011 6537 157-154 -- (+39) 011 6537 111
Postal address
LL.M. in Cybercrime, Cybersecurity and International Law, UNICRI
Viale Maestri del Lavoro, 10 - 10127 - Torino ITALY
How to register
How to apply
Applicants will need to submit a duly completed application form (in MS Word format only) and send it, together with all the documents listed below, to the following email address: unicri.llmcyber@un.org:
- Motivation letter, a personal statement explaining why you are interested in this particular programme and outlining any relevant experience you have. The statement should be written in English and not exceed one page.
- Curriculum Vitae in English.
- Scanned copy of passport reproducing only the personal details and photo page(s).
- Official English certificate if available (see section on entry requirements and item number 10 of the application form).
- An official copy of the Bachelor's (or higher) diploma(s) in its original language issued by the competent University.
- An official certified translation of the above diploma(s) into English if the original document(s) is issued in another language.*
- An official copy of the university transcript(s) of records of all the university studies completed or on-going in the original language issued by the competent University. The official transcript of records must include the following information: full titles of all the courses completed throughout the degree; dates of completion of each course (or at the very least the overall time spent to complete the entire programme); grades obtained; credits awarded; and information on the grading scale.
- An official certified translation of the above transcript(s) of records into English if the original document(s) is issued in another language.
- Any other document that Italian Embassies may require in order to issue study visa. Once selected, you are kindly requested to ask for relevant information to the Italian Embassy.
Please download the Application Form below:
Please note that the submitted application is valid for the 2023/24 edition of the LL.M. only. If you are not selected and wish to apply for the forthcoming edition of the same programme, you may submit a new application as soon as the new call for applications is open.
*The official certified translation of the university diploma(s) and transcript(s) of records are issued by the National Competent Authority of the country where the student has conducted his/her studies according to national regulations.