Although the government has dropped plans to give authorities full access to everyone’s internet browsing history, it will collect metadata regarding who is contacting who, what, when and where, and the data will be made available to the police and security services without a warrant.
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Journalists, lawyers and others in sensitive professions have been promised that safeguards will be written into law governing requests for their data.
In an attempt to assuage privacy concerns, there will be tougher punishments for misuse of data, judicial warrants to access records would be required and local councils wouldn’t be allowed to access data, the BBC said.
“The point we are making in this Bill is, of course lots of people now communicate using email or websites in order to do exactly the same thing”.
However, the security services would be able to access internet communication records, which show which online services were accessed by a suspect and when.
The Home Secretary Theresa May is pushing for a major overhaul of online surveillance laws.
“Powers to intercept communications, acquire communications data and interfere with equipment are essential to tackle child sexual exploitation, to dismantle serious crime cartels, take drugs and guns off our streets and prevent terrorist attacks“, writes the Home Secretary, Theresa May, in the forward of the draft bill.
It was also confirmed that the legislation will contain a requirement for internet companies to retain internet connection records for a maximum period of 12 months. Content is the what: the letter inside the envelope or the phone call itself.
The position was restated by successive PMs, but MPs and campaigners have claimed that bulk data collection programmes breached the principle.
The bill is created to extend the powers of the country’s security agencies, giving them the authority to track the online communications of terrorism suspects, organized criminals and people involved in abuse, exploitation and kidnappings, reports the Guardian.
The revival of the so-called “snoopers’ charter” will get its draft publication in Parliament on Wednesday – but the Government has promised the new version of the controversial bill will have “world-leading oversight” by an appointed commissioner. May informed the House of Commons that 90% of large organizations suffered an information security breach past year.
At the moment, surveillance is monitored by three “oversight commissioners”, who would be replaced under the bill with a single investigatory powers commissioner (who must also be a senior judge).
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Missing from the bill was an expected ban on encryption, which private messaging services such as Facebook’s WhatsApp and Apple’s iMessage can use to make messages unreadable by anyone but the recipient.
