Georgia: Special Investigation Service, a specialized authority for the investigation of the privacy of citizens and crimes of discriminatory type, was created.
A special investigation service (SIS)was established in March 2023 to ensure the confidentiality of citizens’ private lives and to provide prompt and effective investigation of discriminatory crimes.
The 2023 activity report submitted to the Parliament of Georgia discusses the authorities’ work and results.
The formation of a new unit in the country has been prompted by a proliferation of facts about privacy, with practice showing that, in many cases, victims and perpetrators of crime are minors. Therefore, the Service has made fighting and preventing this type of crime one of its top priorities.
After establishing the authority, the investigators were selected from the ranks of the Special Investigations Service (SIS) and specifically trained for the challenge. The head of the government was selected through competition.
The authorities work 24 hours a day, receiving messages through the active hotline 199, the website, mail or citizen statements. Each citizen’s privacy is strictly protected, and the victims will be provided with an environment adapted to them.
The Service investigated 332 cases of breach of privacy and discriminatory offences as part of an ongoing reform and active investigation process since 2022 and identified 86 people.
To prevent this crime, the Service held up to 100 informative meetings with schoolchildren, teachers, parents, students, and citizens throughout Georgia to raise awareness of citizens’ private lives.
Reforms and the formation of the government, on the one hand, helped produce effective investigations of this type of crime and, on the other hand, allowed the Service to devote all remaining resources to investigating crimes committed by law enforcement.
The Special Investigations Service’s report for 2023 is available on the Service’s official website:
https://sis.gov.ge/Statistics-and-reports?rec_id=20