And coming soon to the US!
>BBC News Online: Sci/Tech >Wednesday, 17 July, 2002, 09:15 GMT 10:15 UK >Switch on for state snooping > >Police forces want to plug in to lots of networks > > >From August net service providers in the UK will be obliged to carry out >surveillance of some customers' web habits on behalf of the police. >Controversial laws passed in 2000 oblige large communications companies >to install technology that allows one in 10,000 of their customers to be >watched. > >The information gathered about what people look at on the web, the >content of e-mail messages and their phone conversations will be passed >to the police or a government monitoring station. > >The demands have been criticised by experts who say the law conflicts >with basic guarantees of privacy and that the government is not doing >enough to help pay for the installation of the surveillance systems. > >Data hoover > >The controversial Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act was passed in >October 2000 and gave law enforcement agencies sweeping powers to snoop >on the electronic lives of citizens. > >" It's the internet equivalent of a telephone tap " >Roland Perry, Linx > >The Act demands that organisations it dubs Communication Service >Providers (CSP) - broadly anyone that helps people keep in touch via the >web, fax machine or phone - install technology that can automatically >monitor what many of their customers are doing. > >It also demands that service providers start monitoring a customer >within 24 hours of being told that the police or other investigation >agencies want to snoop on them. > >The information collected must also be passed on electronically to the >agency which asked for the snooping to start. > >A spokesman for the Home Office said 1 August was the day on which the >new surveillance regime would start, even though the technology to do >the watching are yet to be installed. > >He said only law enforcement agencies would have the power to ask for >the surveillance to start. > >Police would have to get a warrant from the Home Office before they >could ask for surveillance to start, he said, and it would only be used >to gather evidence about serious crimes. > >Data delivery > >Roland Perry, public policy director for the London Internet Exchange >which interconnects the networks of net service companies, said the >government was still working out how best to put the surveillance >systems in place. > >"It's a very long-term project," he said. "The whole thing will be done >on a one-to-one basis with the individual companies concerned." > >" Agencies have to make a judgement whether it's worth making a request >if it costs a few hundred pounds to do it " > >Ian Brown, Foundation for Information Policy Research > >The government is also currently working out what types of information >it wants from CSPs and how it will be delivered. > >"In theory, an interception capability would deliver all the data," said >Mr Perry. "It's the internet equivalent of a telephone tap." > >The government is hoping that its work on automatic surveillance will >become a European standard and be widely adopted. > >Costly communication > >Service providers have asked for help to buy the equipment needed to set >up the permanent interception capability. > >"The Home Office has said it would contribute £20m to this but the net >industry has said it will cost a lot more than that," said Ian Brown, >director of the Foundation for Information Policy Research. > >The Internet Service Providers Association has warned about the >potentially huge costs of installing surveillance equipment to meet the >demands of the RIP Act and the recently passed Anti-Terrorism, Crime and >Security Act. > >A spokesman for the organisation said it was still seeking clarification >over the types of data its members were supposed to be catching, how >long it had to be stored for and who would pay for the storage. > >Mr Brown said one of the few safeguards on the snooping system was the >fact that the agencies asking for the surveillance to be carried out >will be charged to use it. > >"This means agencies have to make a >judgement whether it's worth making a request if it costs a few hundred >pounds to do it," said Mr Brown. > > >------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> >Will You Find True Love? >Will You Meet the One? >Free Love Reading by phone! >http://us.click.yahoo.com/O3jeVD/R_ZEAA/Ey.GAA/qkHolB/TM >---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> > > > > > >Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/