What powers does the UK government have to monitor emails at the moment?
Currently most of the powers for monitoring of data come from the Regulation of Interception Powers Act 2000 (RIPA). Which amongst, other things, allows for the interception of communications data. RIPA requires that ISPs maintain the ability to allow for interception The Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act provides guidelines for data retention, though it is currently voluntary. The powers under this act have been condemned for overuse, even by the current government. Do ISPs currently store data? Yes, they do. There are two reasons for this. Commercial reasons, obviously the more data they have about individual’s habits the better they can hone their service, and marketing. Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act. Currently the government has a voluntary code of practice, whereby the ISPs voluntarily collect the data Who can currently authorize the monitoring of emails? The authority to monitor emails and intercept communications comes from different people, depending on where the
