FC: More on Australia's wiretap-crazed spooks

From: Declan McCullagh (declanat_private)
Date: Thu Sep 19 2002 - 09:26:03 PDT

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    Date: Thu, 19 Sep 2002 17:31:52 +1100
    From: Nathan Cochrane <ncochraneat_private>
    Organization: The Age newspaper
    To: declanat_private
    Subject: Re: FC: Australia: Tap-crazed spooks; court orders website deleted
    
    Hi Declan
    
    The rate of phone taps on mobiles and landlines is likely much higher than 
    this figure from one of our reporters would suggest. Telstra (national 
    half-owned telecom incumbent) has the ability to tap phones at will for 
    purposes of maintaining network integrity. It has long been suspected that 
    thousands of phone taps a year are initiated at the request of security 
    agencies and police simply by asking a friendly Telstra techie to do a 
    maintenance check on its lines.
    
    FYI the article below from the Guardian in 2000 suggested the FBI even back 
    then wanted to quadruple the number of wiretaps it did. The writer, Duncan 
    Campbell, wrote another piece in 1999 where he says the Australian 
    government was instrumental in pushing for interception, doubtless at the 
    behest of the US administration.
    
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/online/story/0,3605,293985,00.html
    
    
    Big Brother is back
    Duncan Campbell
    
    Governments all over the world have suddenly become embroiled in 
    controversy about electronic surveillance of the Internet.
    
      In the United States, a political storm has arisen over a new FBI 
    Internet-tapping system codenamed Carnivore. In Britain, the Regulation of 
    Investigatory Powers (RIP) Act has just extended telephone-tapping powers 
    to cover Internet service providers (ISPs), and allows the Government to 
    arrange indiscriminate tapping or email interception for foreign police 
    forces and security agencies.
    
    In the Netherlands, the Dutch security service BVD admitted two weeks ago 
    that it has been collecting emails sent abroad by companies. In the Hague, 
    legislation is being prepared to allow the Justice Ministry to tap into 
    email and subscriber records, scan messages and mobile phone calls, and 
    track users' movements.
    
    The Australian Government has passed laws allowing security agents to 
    attack and modify computers secretly in order to obtain information. Many 
    other governments have similar schemes in the pipeline.
    
    These developments are no coincidence, but are the direct result of secret 
    planning over seven years by an international co-ordinating group set up by 
    the FBI, after the US Congress twice refused to extend its telephone 
    tapping powers for digital networks.
    
      Under the innocuous title of the International Law Enforcement 
    Telecommunications Seminar (ILETS), the group has met annually to plan for 
    and lobby to make telecommunications systems ``interception-friendly''.
    
    ILETS excluded lawyers and industry specialists who might have advised on 
    the arrangements to protect privacy and human rights, or on the feasibility 
    and cost of the intelligence officers' wish list of interception 
    requirements. As a result, the laws based on their recommendations have 
    often caused controversy.
    MORE:
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/Print/0,3858,4049750,00.html
    
    
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    Date: Thu, 19 Sep 2002 17:36:34 +1100
    From: Nathan Cochrane <ncochraneat_private>
    Reply-To: ncochraneat_private
    To: declanat_private
    
     From March 1993.
    
    ASIO LINK IN DELAY TO 'UNTAPPABLE' MOBILE CALLS
    
    Byline: By LYN DUNLEVY Source:The Age
    
         MELBOURNE: A new mobile phone system - billed as untappable - is being 
    delayed because ASIO and law enforcement agencies have insisted that they 
    be able to listen in on conversations carried on the network.
    
        The new network, GSM (or Global System for Mobile), was due to be 
    introduced by Telecom and Optus tomorrow.
    -- 
    
    Nathan Cochrane
    Deputy IT Editor
    :Next:
    The Age and Sydney Morning Herald
    http://www.next.theage.com.au
    
    ---
    
    Date: Thu, 19 Sep 2002 17:38:07 +1100
    From: Nathan Cochrane <ncochraneat_private>
    Reply-To: ncochraneat_private
    To: declanat_private
    
     From April 1993
    
    Telecom launches its new (tappable) mobile phone
    
    Lyn Dunlevy
    
    Telecom will launch its version of the controversial digital GSM 
    mobile-phone system this morning after convincing the Federal Government 
    that calls made on the system will be able to be tapped by law-enforcement 
    agencies.
    Telecom will launch its version of the controversial digital GSM 
    mobile-phone system this morning after convincing the Federal Government 
    that calls made on the system will be able to be tapped by law-enforcement 
    agencies.
    -- 
    
    Nathan Cochrane
    Deputy IT Editor
    :Next:
    The Age and Sydney Morning Herald
    http://www.next.theage.com.au
    
    
    
    
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