A BILL to allow for the retention of telephone and internet data, and for their retrieval by the Garda and law enforcement bodies, has been published by the Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern. The Bill implements an EU directive on data retention and consolidates provisions in the Criminal Justice (Terrorist Offences) Act 2005.
The Bill reduces the time for which telephone data can be retained from three years under the existing law to two, the maximum allowed under the EU directive. Internet data will be retained by service providers for 12 months. The directive allows for a minimum retention period of six months. The Bill will not allow the content of communications to be stored or retrieved, but will retain the identity of the senders and receivers of the communication, the date and time sent, and, in the case of mobile phones, the location of the phones.
Such information played a crucial role in the prosecution of those accused of involvement in the Omagh bombings. Service providers will be obliged to disclose the data retained to a senior Garda, a senior Revenue official or a senior Army officer, comply with a court order for disclosure, or a request from the Data Protection Commissioner. A person to whom the data relates may also request the data. Requests must be made in writing, but can be made orally in exceptional circumstances, provided a written request is made within two days.
The Bill provides that a member of An Garda Síochána not below the rank of chief superintendent may request a service provider to disclose data that is required for the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of serious offences; for safeguarding the security of the State; or for the saving of human life.
It will also allow an officer of the permanent Defence Forces, not below the rank of colonel, to request data in the interests of safeguarding the security of the State, and an officer of the Revenue Commissioners, not below the rank of principal officer, to request data for the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of specified revenue offences.
All three organisations will have to prepare reports for their respective Ministers on data requests, and the State will have to submit an overall report to the European Commission.
In order to justify a request, the officer must be investigating an offence carrying a minimum of a five-year prison sentence, or an offence listed in a schedule attached to the Bill, which includes offences relating to criminal assets, offences against the person, corruption and child abuse. The Data Protection Commissioner will be the national supervisory authority for the purposes of the Act.
A High Court judge will oversee the operation of the Act. In addition, anyone who believes that data relevant to him or her has been accessed following a disclosure request can apply to the complaints referee who will investigate the matter and, if data has been requested, whether it should not have been. The referee can order the data to be destroyed and compensation to be paid if a wrongful request was made.
Mr Ahern said: “I am satisfied that these are the minimum periods required by An Garda Síochána and the permanent Defence Force to ensure that the gardaí have the means to fight crime, including gangland crime, and for the Garda and Defence Force to safeguard the security of the State. It is also essential that the Revenue Commissioners be in a position to investigate offences that are often aimed at defrauding the State. Information from retained data is also important in ensuring a secure environment for doing business in Ireland.”