[AU] 2500 metadata 'cops' to search phone and internet records

[ofr057]

the age published a news article that goes on to state that there will be roughly 2500 cops creeping through our phone and internet records now that the metadata laws have passed.

 

 

full article

About 2500 officials across the country will be able to sign off on access to Australians' phone and internet records under the Abbott government's new "metadata" laws passed last week.

A detailed analysis by Fairfax Media has found the great majority of people empowered to approve requests for so-called communications metadata are police officers.

Such data can be accessed from telco firms without a warrant, however the application has to be approved by a senior officer or official.

 

NSW Police leads the way with more than 900 senior officers able to sign off on junior colleagues' requests to get data. Victoria Police have more than 400 officers who meet the threshold of seniority to approve the requests and Queensland Police more than 300.

 

The Australian Federal Police have 190 sworn officers who can authorise requests, though a spokesman said fewer than 55 did so in the regular course of their jobs.

Under the controversial new laws that received final ratification by the Senate on Thursday night, phone and internet companies will be forced to keep customers' data – such as the origin, destination and time of phone calls, text messages and emails – for at least two years.

 

It does not include the content of communications, access to which requires a warrant.

Police and other agencies say metadata is a vital tool in most investigations. But they say their powers are gradually eroding in the digital age as telco firms, which increasingly charge customers on flat rates or by the amount of data they use, wipe records of individual communications after as little as a few days.

 

The 22 agencies who will be able to access metadata under the new laws is actually fewer than the roughly 80 who can do so currently. As a trade-off under the new laws,  Attorney-General George Brandis limited the number of agencies to crucial crime-fighting and national security bodies, removing groups like the RSPCA and local councils.

But privacy advocates say the stakes are higher under the new laws because compulsory retention will create an ever-growing pool of data that is open to misuse.

 

George Williams, a law professor at the University of NSW, described the 2500 officials as "a remarkably high figure".

"This affirms the need for more than a self-serve model of access to metadata," he said. "The absence of external checks is very concerning … Limiting metadata approval to more senior people within these organisations would be a start, but I do not think that would be sufficient. It is well accepted in other comparable areas that external checks and oversight is required in regard to the decision to access sensitive, private material."

 

Senator Brandis said after the legislation passed that it contained "strengthened safeguards" including new oversight powers for the Commonwealth Ombudsman.

 

Fairfax Media contacted all of the 23 agencies that are listed in the legislation as being able to access metadata under the new laws. Most supplied information on how many of their staff could approve requests.

Most state police forces authorise officers at the rank of Inspector and above to approve requests.

 

In addition to police forces, the Australian Taxation Office has 276 senior staff who can approve requests, the Australian Crime Commission has 21 staff, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has three staff and the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption has eight staff.

 

The Australian Customs and Border Protection Service refused to say how many of its staff approved access to people's metadata, but its latest annual report shows it has 65 staff at Senior Executive Service level – typically the level required to authorise requests.

A range of integrity and anti-corruption agencies can also access metadata, generally with fewer than 10 staff empowered to approve access.

 

On the request of a Parliamentary inquiry into the new laws,  Senator Brandis amended the government's legislation to state that officials approving access requests must "be satisfied" that the invasion of privacy is justifiable and proportionate.

 

I'm not surprised with all the shit going on the government would be able to get anything passed that is security related, but saying that there's 276 staff at the australian tax office who can approve requests meaning that large corporations doing white collar crimes could feel the pressure from these's new laws aswell

 

link - http://www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/2500-metadata-cops-to-search-phone-and-internet-records-20150328-1m9e0a.html

[awesomes8wc3]

well aint that just a punch in the pants.

[SImoHayha]

Jesus the shit Australians have to deal with.....Worst place to live ever.

[SIGSEGV]

Guys, guys, guys, we need to take a step back. This legislation will protect us from the big-bad terrorists! We need to let the government use our private files 'for research purposes'</sarcasm>

[Guest]

I still can't believe this got through.  :blink:

[Shotgun]

Wtf.

[Serin]

The Liberals play a smart game.. They've just boosted the VPN market by a large amount. Finally some good business practices /sarcasm
On the bright side this stuff doesn't come into effect until 2017, so we've got time to nuke Labor and the Libs into submission. And by nuke I mean vote them out of more of their power at the next Federation election. If the NSW election is anything to go by the Fed's will be dropping seats. 

I really did think one of the things laws had to be was enforceable... People can get around this shit easily according to lord master Brandis.
 

[ofr057]

Its going to be interesting in seeing the cost blow out on this, they where calling bloody murder about the cost of border protection (which i bet has gone up)

[qwertywarrior]

but ..... its like they are under the belief that Australia is the number one target of terrorist attacks with daily suicide bombings

[Lord Baal]

Well time to move out of this shit hole I think.

[allindaze]

but ..... its like they are under the belief that Australia is the number one target of terrorist attacks with daily suicide bombings

Australia is just a test bed for these kinds of things. Once they learn how to deal with the backlash in Australia they're going to do it in the U.S. and Europe.

[Guest]

there will be roughly 2500 cops creeping through our phone and internet records now

 

That's... misleading wording.

They will be able to- in the course of an investigation- make a request for certain person's metadata, which won't have to be approved by a judge.

It's not like there will be 2500 cops sitting somewhere, rifling through random citizen's records to see if they're not committing thought crimes.

[ChineseChef]

Australia is just a test bed for these kinds of things. Once they learn how to deal with the backlash in Australia they're going to do it in the U.S. and Europe.

 

The truth in your statement is frightening.  Having global communications lets us see what they are trying in other countries.  And if you watch closely, and remember history, you can see that they aren't canceling things that go bad.  They just figure out how to introduce crazy laws in a way the public is OK with.  Or they figure out just how much they can opening ram down the throats of the public despite anger, knowing full well that people will stop caring after a very short amount of time.

 

It is one of the reasons they have very little interest in "fixing" the economy.  As long as us plebs have to keep working every day to feed ourselves, we will keep our heads down cause we don't want to be the ones to lose everything.  If you see people standing up for themselves and their morals get their lives destroyed, and yet accomplish nothing, you will be much more hesitant to do anything.  Hard to gather the mobs when everyone knows it will do no good and you will just lose everything.