Honduras Plans Cybersecurity Law for Congress by End-2026, Regulator Says
HONDURAS · TECHNOLOGY
Key Facts
- —The country Honduras, in Central America, is still drafting a cybersecurity law. It has also not joined the Budapest Convention, the main international treaty on cybercrime.
- —The background Phishing, messages with links that steal personal data, is one threat the regulator cites. Most attacks come from abroad, which the regulator says makes them hard to prosecute.
- —Why now On 29 September prosecutors and the Supreme Court said they will ask Congress for new cybercrime offences. Two days later the telecoms regulator set out its own plan.
- —What happened On 1 October 2026 a Conatel commissioner said a draft cybersecurity law could go to Congress by the end of 2026.
- —Who is who César Cáceres of Conatel works with the ITU, the United Nations telecoms agency. The plan includes a state cyber-incident response centre.
- —What it means for you Nothing changes yet, as the law is still a draft. The regulator’s warning about text messages with links applies now.
- —Still open The draft text, the cost of the response centre and when it will open have not been published.
Honduras’s telecoms regulator says a draft cybersecurity law could be ready and sent to the National Congress by the end of 2026. César Cáceres, a commissioner of the National Telecommunications Commission (Conatel), gave the timeline on 1 October, the newspaper Tiempo reported.
The plan also includes a state centre to detect and respond to cyber attacks. Neither the draft law nor a budget for the centre has been made public.
What the regulator announced
The proposed law aims to strengthen the state’s ability to prevent, investigate and respond to cyber attacks, Cáceres said. It is part of a national cybersecurity strategy that Conatel is preparing with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
“We hope that by the end of the year we can have it ready and sent to Congress,” he told HCH television. “But above all, we are working hard to set up a centre (…) to respond to cybersecurity attacks.”
He described phishing as a present danger, on which Conatel works directly with the phone companies. “There are people who send messages with links for people to open, and that is where they capture the information,” he said.
A response centre for the state
The centre would be what specialists call a CSIRT, a computer security incident response team. Such teams watch for attacks, coordinate the response and help restore systems.
Cáceres said it would guard databases that “cannot be hijacked”, including the central registers of personal data. It would also cover security, defence and the country’s critical infrastructure.
He gave no date for the centre to open, no budget and no staff numbers.
Why the Budapest treaty matters
Conatel is also working on certifications that would let Honduras join the Budapest Convention. The 2001 treaty, drawn up by the Council of Europe, sets common rules for prosecuting cybercrime and sharing evidence across borders.
“The attacks are not local; most are international,” Cáceres said. Because Honduras has not joined, he added, it lacks a mechanism to pursue such crimes internationally.
A second track on cybercrime
The regulator’s plan runs alongside a separate push by the Public Ministry, the prosecution service, and the Supreme Court. On 29 September they said they will ask Congress to modernise the criminal law on cybercrime, Tiempo reported.
Their proposal would add new offences, with priority for human trafficking and child sexual exploitation through online platforms, and online fraud. It would also tighten the rules on electronic evidence in investigations and trials.
That initiative followed Honduras’s participation in the 15th United Nations Crime Congress in Abu Dhabi. There, the Honduran delegation reached agreements with the Cybersecurity Council of the United Arab Emirates.
What comes next
Both proposals must still reach Honduras’s single-chamber Congress, where lawmakers can change them. Conatel’s target is the end of 2026; the prosecutors and the court have given no date.
The announcement is a plan, not a law, and it places no new duties on companies or users today. Cáceres did not link it to any specific recent attack on state systems.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Conatel?
Conatel, the National Telecommunications Commission, is the state body that regulates telecommunications in Honduras.
What is a CSIRT?
A computer security incident response team detects cyber attacks, coordinates the response and helps systems recover. Honduras plans one to protect state databases and critical infrastructure.
Has Honduras joined the Budapest Convention on cybercrime?
Not yet. Conatel says it is working on the certifications needed to join the 2001 treaty, which helps countries cooperate against cybercrime.
Sources: Tiempo, 1 October 2026 (quoting César Cáceres on HCH); Tiempo, 29 September 2026.
Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error
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