Wednesday, May 3, 2017

Australian Federal Police Accessed Journalist's Phone Records Illegally - ‘We Told You So'

My latest post for Global Voices Advox:

The Australian Federal Police revealed on April 28 that one of their officers broke the law by accessing a journalist's phone records without a warrant.

...There was... a strong negative reaction on social media, especially from critics of the data retention system. There were concerns that the police, often referred to as the AFP (not to be confused with the French news wire) are above the law as the officer concerned is not facing any action.

...Others shared their concerns that the original justification for retaining and accessing data, namely national security and drug law enforcement, was being used to control media freedom

...The police have admitted that the data revealed by the breach cannot be “unseen”. Whether evidence arising from the illegality will be admissible in a court case remains unclear.

‘We Told You So: Australian Federal Police Accessed Journalist's Phone Records Illegally