The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) has recommended the Parliament pass three new warrant powers to help law enforcement agencies combat online crime, with amendments.

Media release issue date: Thursday, 5 August 2021

The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) has recommended the Parliament pass three new warrant powers to help law enforcement agencies combat online crime, with amendments. In its Advisory report on the Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020 tabled late Thursday, the PJCIS made 34 recommendations in relation to the Bill, including recommendations to improve oversight and accountability of intelligence functions. The three new powers are: a data disruption warrant which enables the AFP and the ACIC to access data on one or more computers and perform disruption activities for the purpose of frustrating the commission of criminal activity; a network activity warrant to enable the AFP and the ACIC to collect intelligence on criminal networks operating online; and an account takeover warrant to allow AFP and the ACIC to takeover a person's online account for the purposes of gathering evidence of criminal activity. The Bill has been introduced in response to growing technological advancement that challenges the ability of our law enforcement and intelligence bodies to combat serious human trafficking, drug crime, child sexual abuse and terrorism. Chair of the Committee, Senator James Paterson said: “It is no exaggeration to state that, particularly during the COVID pandemic, online crime has reached an all-time high. Evidence from the AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw informed the Committee that the AFP had seen a worrying rise in traffic to the dark web, including 168 per cent more child abuse material and identified during the first quarter of 2020 as opposed to the same period in 2019.” “The new warrants will give our law enforcement agencies effective powers to enable swift and decisive action against the rising challenge of serious online crime,” Senator Paterson said. “However the Committee also recommends increased oversight, more prescription in the offences the warrants are able to target and a more robust authorisation process for the warrants to give the community confidence they will only used for their intended purpose,” Senator Paterson said. Further information on the inquiry as well as a copy of the report can be obtained from the Committee’s website. Media inquiries: Chair, Senator James Paterson via Deborah Seccombe on 0451 255 891 or deborah.seccombe@aph.gov.au For background information:  Committee Secretariat (02) 6277 2360 pjcis@aph.gov.au For more information about this Committee, you can visit its website. On the site, you can make a submission to an inquiry, read other submissions, and get details for upcoming public hearings. You can also track the Committee and receive email updates by clicking on the blue ‘Track Committee’ button in the bottom right hand corner of the page.

The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security will hold a public hearing this week for its Review of the Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020.

Media release issue date: Tuesday, 9 March 2021

  The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) will hold a public hearing this week for its Review of the Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020. The Bill review was requested by the Minister for Home Affairs in a letter to the Committee. Public hearing details Wednesday, 10 March 2021 10 am–5 pm (AEST) Committee Room 2R1, Parliament House, Canberra A program for the hearing can be found on the committee’s website. Committee Chair Senator James Paterson stated ‘The committee will consider three new powers proposed in the Bill for the AFP and the ACIC. They are: Data disruption warrants to enable the AFP and the ACIC to disrupt data by modifying, adding, copying or deleting in order to frustrate the commission of serious offences online Network activity warrants to allow agencies to collect intelligence on serious criminal activity being conducted by criminal networks, and Account takeover warrants to provide the AFP and the ACIC with the ability to take control of a person’s online account for the purposes of gathering evidence to further a criminal investigation.’ Due to COVID-19 restrictions, teleconference and video conference facilities may be used to connect witnesses to Committee Members. The hearings will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live. Further information on the inquiry can be obtained from the Committee’s website. Media enquiries Chair, Senator James Paterson via Sophie McKendry, Media Advisor on 0451 007 915 or Sophie.McKendry@aph.gov.au. Background information Committee Secretariat, Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, (02) 6277 2360 or pjcis@aph.gov.au. For more information about this Committee, you can visit its website. On the site you can make a submission to an inquiry, read other submissions, and get details for upcoming public hearings. You can also track the Committee and receive email updates by clicking on the blue ‘Track Committee’ button in the bottom right hand corner of the page.

The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security has commenced a review into the Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020. The bill review was referred to the Committee by the Hon Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Home Affairs.

Media release issue date: Tuesday, 8 December 2020

The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security has commenced a review into the Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020. The bill review was referred to the Committee by the Hon Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Home Affairs. The Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020 will amend the Surveillance Devices Act 2004, the Crimes Act 1914 and associated legislation to introduce new law enforcement powers and warrants to enhance the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC)'s ability to combat cyber-enabled serious and organised crime, including online child exploitation. The Bill introduces: a data disruption warrant which enables the AFP and the ACIC to access data on one or more computers and perform disruption activities for the purpose of frustrating the commission of criminal activity; a network activity warrant to enable the AFP and the ACIC to collect intelligence on criminal networks operating online; an account takeover warrant to allow AFP and the ACIC to takeover a person's online account the purposes of gathering evidence of criminal activity, and; minor amendments to the controlled operations regime, to ensure controlled operations can be conducted effectively in the online environment. The Committee requests submissions to the inquiry by Friday 12 February 2021. Prospective submitters are advised that any submission to the Committee’s inquiry must be prepared solely for the inquiry and should not be published prior to being accepted by the Committee. Further information about making a submission to a committee inquiry can be found at the following link. Media enquiries Chair, Mr Andrew Hastie MP (Canning, WA) 08 9534 8044 (Electorate office) 02 6277 4223 (Parliament House) For background information Committee Secretariat 02 6277 2360 pjcis@aph.gov.au