Cybersnooping

Did you know the Government has powers to check out your Internet activities on demand? Under The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIP) you could find yourself under cyber-surveillance without even knowing about it.

RIP: In a nutshell

• The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act aims to control the way that data is encrypted over the net. What's more, it requires all UK Internet Service Providers to install systems enabling private emails to be intercepted, on the issue of a warrant, and without permission or knowledge from the person under scrutiny.

• RIP allows the fuzz, the secret services, customs and excise and the tax man to target individuals if they suspect they're up to no good and basically monitor their emails, phone calls (including mobiles) and fax habits.

• The intention is to catch criminals, or to put a troublesome part of the population under communications surveillance, depending on your point of view. The Government believe people are using new technology to pursue illegal activities, but many critics claim it'll be all too easy for the bad guys to bypass and even abuse the system itself. It's one thing for the Government to have the digital equivalent of your back door key, but what if it falls into criminal hands?

• Computer encryption can basically be defined as anything you send or receive that requires a password to access. Using credit cards over 'secure sever' websites is a good current example, but as technology improves, encryption will become more widespread as a means of guaranteeing confidentiality - so encrypted emails could soon be commonplace for any old message you happen to send.

• Under RIP proposals, should a government agency ask you to provide an encryption password, it will be an offence not to do so punishable by two years imprisonment. The law will have to prove you had the password in the first place, but YOU have to prove that you no longer have it. Not only could this send a lot of innocent scatterbrains away for a two year stretch, it may actually encourage villains to lock up incriminating evidence that would otherwise earn them longer jail terms.

• Critics also feel the RIP Act raises a host of implications regarding the cost to British e-commerce of putting this system in place. Some feel it will deter overseas consumers and encryption-dependent companies from doing business with the UK.

June 2002 - RIP update

Controversial government plans to vastly increase the number of public bodies who could snoop on your private communications have recently been shelved. Due to growing public opposition, Home Office Minister, David Blunkett accepted that amending the RIP act to allow organisations like your local council, The Post Office and The Food Standards Association to monitor your surfing/email habits probably wasn't going to do a great deal in the fight against international terrorism - one of the central arguments for the revisions to the RIP law. This doesn't mean the plans have been scrapped, however, merely withdrawn for further consultation.