Big Brother bill under scrutiny

Big Brother bill under scrutiny (registration required)

13.03.2003 - Privacy is not merely instrumental in the achievement of other goals but is a basic human right that applies to all persons by virtue of their status as human beings. It is not possible to overstate just how fundamental privacy is in a civilised legal system,” said the Law Reform Commission in 1998 in its report on privacy, surveillance and the interception of telecommunications.

Such an idealistic and civilised viewpoint is in danger of being swept aside by a contentious new bill that is aimed at monitoring and capturing internet and telephone data to be used in the interest of combating crime and protecting national security against terrorism.

The proposed Telecommunications Retention of Data Traffic Bill due to go before the Oireachtas in coming weeks has raised the ire of many civil rights groups as well as telecom carriers and internet service providers (ISPs) who seriously doubt they can log and monitor phone calls, text messages, faxes, emails and internet usage over a four-year period.

When news of the bill was leaked to the media in November it prompted outrage and Justice Minister Michael McDowell TD had to row in and deny that it was a “Big Brother bill”. Telcos and ISPs say that the technicality of storing and accessing such data was nigh on impossible and that the existence of such legislation might harm the progress of e-commerce and internet usage in Ireland.

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