[Infowarrior] - Oz government demands universal wiretapping

[Richard Forno]

Concerns raised as government demands universal wiretapping
Privacy an afterthought.
Darren Pauli 17/04/2008 09:47:07
http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;81561031;fp;;fpid;;pf;1

Sweeping reforms will make it easier than ever for law enforcement to
intercept communications if amendments to the Telecommunications
(Interceptions) Act are agreed upon by a Senate standing committee.

The federal government is pushing a bill to force all telecommunications
providers to facilitate lawful data interception across fixed and mobile
telephone systems, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), Instant Messaging
(IM) and chat room discussions.

The standing committee is meeting today to discuss the proposed changes to
Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Amendment Bill 2008 (TIA).

The amendments build on previous reforms by the then Howard government which
required Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to implement wiretapping
provisions in VoIP services.

Private organisations will be handed "quasi-police" powers under separate
government plans announced on Monday.

Attorney-General Robert McClelland said business owners will be handed
powers to intercept employee e-mails without notice in a bid to prevent
cyber-terrorism.

Consumer advocacy groups are outraged by the reforms and have questioned the
motives of the government, labelling the move as a blatant invasion of
privacy.

NSW Council of Civil Liberties president, Cameron Murphy, said the changes
are unnecessary and will inadvertently subject hundreds of people to privacy
violations.

"These laws will massively increase the number of interception points
available for techniques such as wiretapping," Murphy said.

"Everything from online chatting, to Skype (VoIP) and mobile phone calls
will be open to interception."

He believes the changes are being driven by law enforcement which is
effectively offloading its work on the private industry.

The reforms also violate the privacy of other parties involved in a
monitored communication channel, according to the Council, the Australian
Privacy Foundation (APF) and the Electronic Frontiers Association (EFA).

The organisations told Computerworld that NSW law, which allows businesses
to intercept employee e-mails with consent, is a breach of the TIA and the
Privacy Act. The problem arises from ambiguity in the law which does not
stipulate rules for dealing with third party information, and what
constitutes consent.

APF board member Roger Clarke called on the government to provide clarity
and scope on the new proposals, including what the changes hope to
ultimately achieve and who will be affected. "Any employer that acted on the
powers of interception (under the NSW bill) are in breach of the TIA and the
Privacy Act if they are accessing the information of non-employees," Clarke
said.

"The attempts of the Attorney-General's Departments of successive
governments to get some changes to the TIA have been torn apart by various
agencies because they haven't addressed scope.

"Every time ministers open their mouths on this type of policy, they keep
saying something stupid." He said the scope of the changes can be
interpreted to apply to all employers, to private organisations with a
responsibility to national infrastructure, or to investigators of serious
threats against nation infrastructure.

"The last thing we want is private investigators running with enormous
powers if an act of terrorism occurs," Clarke said, speaking of McClelland's
reference that the employers powers is a counter-terrorism measure.

The APF has argued for years for workplace privacy protection law reform,
and for interception to be solely in the hands of trained investigators
under the public service framework.

Both Murphy, Clarke and EFA chair Dale Clapperton called for government to
document what it sees as problems with the TIA.