1. The UK"s Investigatory Powers Bill was introduced into Parliament on 1 March 2016, following scrutiny of the draft Bill by three Parliamentary Committees. That morning, before publication of the Bill, I tweeted 10 major issues and 10 more specific points. Here they are, plus my follow-ups and commentary.
  2. Not done. In fact the Bill now goes further than the draft Bill by extending equipment interference warrants - targeted, thematic and bulk - to bring private networks into scope.
  3. Not done. Compulsory generation and retention of ICRs remains a centrepiece of the Bill.
  4. Not done...
  5. Not done. The Secretary of State would be able to extend data retention beyond ICRs by giving broader notices to communications service providers, with no prior public consultation. The Bill would prevent CSPs revealing the notices to the public.
  6. Not done. More on Related Communications Data here and here. This was the Home Office Response to the ISC Report:
  7. And Related Communications Data is henceforth to be known as "Secondary Data":
  8. Not done. Operational purposes may still be general:
  9. Not done. The Bill attempts to future-proof powers, not the privacy/intrusion balance. As happened with RIPA, that balance is liable to change out of all recognition as people use technology in new ways and the powers automatically follow.
  10. The Bill is still based on abstract, technology-neutral definitions of, in particular, datatypes. Some of the definitions approach RIPA levels of impenetrability. Try Relevant Communications Data, with its 15 cross-linked sub-definitions. And see below the Protected Material triple negative. The Bill provides for a Review after five and a half years, but the powers are not sunsetted.
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