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UK: DIP Bill: Unfettered bulk data collection powers presage mass surveillance and a debate about haystacks

10 November 2015

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"The choices are:

(a) build the largest haystack about all the population because you know that the needle has to be in there “somewhere”; or

(b) have the powers to look at all the relevant smaller haystacks that are around when you have inkling as to what kind of needle you are looking for.

In Article 8 Human Rights terms, does Parliament enact legislation that allows the national security agencies to collect bulk personal data when there is no prior suspicion, so these agencies can do speculative searches in the hope they get lucky? Or do you have the traditional civil liberties view that you need a modicum of prior suspicion before you go looking?

The Home Office prefer the former; the civil liberties lobby the latter - and that is one of the key divisive issues at the heart of the Draft Investigatory Powers Bill (“DIP”) published last week."

See: Unfettered bulk data collection powers presage mass surveillance and a debate about haystacks (Hawktalk, link)

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