The U.K. government on Wednesday proposed a new law that would require ISPs to store their customers’ Internet usage records for up to a year.
The legislation, called the Investigatory Powers Bill (IPB), also proposes to authorise the interception and collection of bulk communications data, even if it involves hacking into a device.
"The task of law enforcement and the security and intelligence agencies has become vastly more demanding in this digital age. It is right, therefore, that those who are charged with protecting us should have the powers they need to do so," said Home Secretary Theresa May, in a speech to MPs that was also published on the Home Office’s Website.
She insisted the new proposals are a departure from her 2012 Communications Data Bill – the so-called ‘Snooper’s Charter’ that was blocked during the last parliament.
"It will not include powers to force U.K. companies to capture and retain third party Internet traffic from companies based overseas. It will not compel overseas communications service providers to meet our domestic retention obligations for communications data. And it will not ban encryption or do anything to undermine the security of people’s data," May said.
What the IPB will enable though is security and intelligence agencies to order ISPs to collect and retain records of the Internet services that a specific device connects to, such as a Website or instant messaging application. Records would have to be stored for 12 months.
Without this data, the government argues, it is not always possible to attribute a particular action on the Internet to a real person or persons.
The bill also proposes to allow security and intelligence agencies to use these powers in bulk to establish links between suspects in the U.K., and to identify threats originating from outside the country.
Furthermore, the draft law would also make it legal for security and intelligence services to hack into computers and smartphones in order to monitor encrypted communications.
To ensure the IPB is wielded responsibly, the draft proposes to introduce a ‘double-lock’ for interception warrants, which means they cannot be enforced without authorisation from both the Secretary of State and a judge. The government also plans to appoint an Investigatory Powers Commissioner (IPC), a senior judge who will oversee how the powers are used.
In order to prevent abuse the draft bill will also make it a criminal offence to wilfully or recklessly acquire communications data.
The IPB "will provide unparalleled openness and transparency about our investigatory powers. It will provide the strongest safeguards and world-leading oversight arrangements. And it will give the men and women of our security and intelligence agencies and our law enforcement agencies…the powers they need to protect our country," May insisted.
