Unlawful and authorised interception |
| | An Act to make provision for and about the interception of communications,
the acquisition and disclosure of data relating to communications, the
carrying out of surveillance, the use of covert human intelligence sources
and the acquisition of the means by which electronic data protected by
encryption or passwords may be decrypted or accessed; to provide for
Commissioners and a tribunal with functions and jurisdiction in relation to
those matters, to entries on and interferences with property or with wireless
telegraphy and to the carrying out of their functions by the Security Service,
the Secret Intelligence Service and the Government Communications
Headquarters; and for connected purposes.
[28th July 2000]
BE IT ENACTED by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with
the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and
Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:-
PART I
COMMUNICATIONS
CHAPTER I
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(1) It shall be an offence for a person intentionally and without lawful
authority to intercept, at any place in the United Kingdom, any
communication in the course of its transmission by means of-
(a) a public postal service; or
(b) a public telecommunication system.
(2) It shall be an offence for a person-
(a) intentionally and without lawful authority, and
(b) otherwise than in circumstances in which his conduct is excluded
by subsection (6) from criminal liability under this subsection, to
intercept, at any place in the United Kingdom, any communication
in the course of its transmission by means of a private
telecommunication system.
(3) Any interception of a communication which is carried out at any place
in the United Kingdom by, or with the express or implied consent of, a
person having the right to control the operation or the use of a private
telecommunication system shall be actionable at the suit or instance
of the sender or recipient, or intended recipient, of the communication
if it is without lawful authority and is either-
(a) an interception of that communication in the course of its
transmission by means of that private system; or
(b) an interception of that communication in the course of its transmission,
by means of a public telecommunication system, to or from apparatus
comprised in that private telecommunication system.
(4) Where the United Kingdom is a party to an international agreement which-
(a) relates to the provision of mutual assistance in connection with, or in
the form of, the interception of communications,
(b) requires the issue of a warrant, order or equivalent instrument in cases
in which assistance is given, and
(c) is designated for the purposes of this subsection by an order made
by the Secretary of State, it shall be the duty of the Secretary of State
to secure that no request for assistance in accordance with the
agreement is made on behalf of a person in the United Kingdom to the
competent authorities of a country or territory outside the United
Kingdom except with lawful authority.
(5) Conduct has lawful authority for the purposes of this section if, and only if-
(a) it is authorised by or under section 3 or 4;
(b) it takes place in accordance with a warrant under section 5 ("an
interception warrant"); or
(c) it is in exercise, in relation to any stored communication, of any
statutory power that is exercised (apart from this section) for the
purpose of obtaining information or of taking possession of any
document or other property; and conduct (whether or not prohibited
by this section) which has lawful authority for the purposes of this
section by virtue of paragraph (a) or (b) shall also be taken to be lawful
for all other purposes.
(6) The circumstances in which a person makes an interception of a
communication in the course of its transmission by means of a private
telecommunication system are such that his conduct is excluded from
criminal liability under subsection (2) if-
(a) he is a person with a right to control the operation or the use of the
system; or
(b) he has the express or implied consent of such a person to make the
interception.
(7) A person who is guilty of an offence under subsection (1) or (2) shall be
liable-
(a) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding
two years or to a fine, or to both;
(b) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum.
(8) No proceedings for any offence which is an offence by virtue of this
section shall be instituted-
(a) in England and Wales, except by or with the consent of the Director
of Public Prosecutions;
(b) in Northern Ireland, except by or with the consent of the Director of
Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland
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Meaning and location of "interception" etc. | | 2. -
(1) In this Act-
"postal service" means any service which-
(a) consists in the following, or in any one or more of them, namely,
the collection, sorting, conveyance, distribution and delivery (whether
in the United Kingdom or elsewhere) of postal items; and
(b) is offered or provided as a service the main purpose of which, or one
of the main purposes of which, is to make available, or to facilitate, a
means of transmission from place to place of postal items
containing communications;
"private telecommunication system" means any telecommunication
system which, without itself being a public telecommunication system,
is a system in relation to which the following conditions are satisfied-
(a) it is attached, directly or indirectly and whether or not for the purposes
of the communication in question, to a public telecommunication
system; and
(b) there is apparatus comprised in the system which is both located
in the United Kingdom and used (with or without other apparatus) for
making the attachment to the public telecommunication system;
"public postal service" means any postal service which is offered or
provided to, or to a substantial section of, the public in any one or more
parts of the United Kingdom;
"public telecommunications service" means any telecommunications
service which is offered or provided to, or to a substantial section of, the
public in any one or more parts of the United Kingdom;
"public telecommunication system" means any such parts of a
telecommunication system by means of which any public
telecommunications service is provided as are located in the
United Kingdom;
"telecommunications service" means any service that consists in
the provision of access to, and of facilities for making use of, any
telecommunication system (whether or not one provided by the
person providing the service); and
"telecommunication system" means any system (including the
apparatus comprised in it) which exists (whether wholly or partly
in the United Kingdom or elsewhere) for the purpose of facilitating the
transmission of communications by any means involving the use of
electrical or electro-magnetic energy.
(2) For the purposes of this Act, but subject to the following provisions
of this section, a person intercepts a communication in the course
of its transmission by means of a telecommunication system if,
and only if, he-
(a) so modifies or interferes with the system, or its operation,
(b) so monitors transmissions made by means of the system, or
(c) so monitors transmissions made by wireless telegraphy to or from
apparatus comprised in the system,
as to make some or all of the contents of the communication available,
while being transmitted, to a person other than the sender or intended
recipient of the communication.
(3) References in this Act to the interception of a communication do not
include references to the interception of any communication broadcast
for general reception.
(4) For the purposes of this Act the interception of a communication takes
place in the United Kingdom if, and only if, the modification, interference
or monitoring or, in the case of a postal item, the interception is effected
by conduct within the United Kingdom and the communication is either-
(a) intercepted in the course of its transmission by means of a public
postal service or public telecommunication system; or
(b) intercepted in the course of its transmission by means of a private
telecommunication system in a case in which the sender or intended
recipient of the communication is in the United Kingdom.
(5) References in this Act to the interception of a communication in the
course of its transmission by means of a postal service or
telecommunication system do not include references to-
(a) any conduct that takes place in relation only to so much of the
communication as consists in any traffic data comprised in or attached
to a communication (whether by the sender or otherwise) for the
purposes of any postal service or telecommunication system by
means of which it is being or may be transmitted; or
(b) any such conduct, in connection with conduct falling within
paragraph (a), as gives a person who is neither the sender nor the
intended recipient only so much access to a communication as is
necessary for the purpose of identifying traffic data so
comprised or attached.
(6) For the purposes of this section references to the modification of a
telecommunication system include references to the attachment of
any apparatus to, or other modification of or interference with-
(a) any part of the system; or
(b) any wireless telegraphy apparatus used for making transmissions
to or from apparatus comprised in the system.
(7) For the purposes of this section the times while a communication is
being transmitted by means of a telecommunication system shall be
taken to include any time when the system by means of which the
communication is being, or has been, transmitted is used for storing
it in a manner that enables the intended recipient to collect it or otherwise
to have access to it.
(8) For the purposes of this section the cases in which any contents of a
communication are to be taken to be made available to a person while
being transmitted shall include any case in which any of the contents of
the communication, while being transmitted, are diverted or recorded so
as to be available to a person subsequently.
(9) In this section "traffic data", in relation to any communication, means-
(a) any data identifying, or purporting to identify, any person, apparatus
or location to or from which the communication is or may be transmitted,
(b) any data identifying or selecting, or purporting to identify or select,
apparatus through which, or by means of which, the communication is
or may be transmitted,
(c) any data comprising signals for the actuation of apparatus used for
the purposes of a telecommunication system for effecting (in whole
or in part) the transmission of any communication, and
(d) any data identifying the data or other data as data comprised in or
attached to a particular communication,
but that expression includes data identifying a computer file or computer
program access to which is obtained, or which is run, by means of the
communication to the extent only that the file or program is identified by
reference to the apparatus in which it is stored.
(10) In this section-
(a) references, in relation to traffic data comprising signals for the
actuation of apparatus, to a telecommunication system by means
of which a communication is being or may be transmitted include
references to any telecommunication system in which that apparatus
is comprised; and
(b) references to traffic data being attached to a communication include
references to the data and the communication being logically
associated with each other;
and in this section "data", in relation to a postal item, means anything
written on the outside of the item.
(11) In this section "postal item" means any letter, postcard or other such thing
in writing as may be used by the sender for imparting information to the
recipient, or any packet or parcel. |
Lawful interception without an interception warrant. | | 3. -
(1) Conduct by any person consisting in the interception of a communication
is authorised by this section if the communication is one which, or which
that person has reasonable grounds for believing, is both-
(a) a communication sent by a person who has consented to
the interception; and
(b) a communication the intended recipient of which has so consented.
(2) Conduct by any person consisting in the interception of a communication
is authorised by this section if-
(a) the communication is one sent by, or intended for, a person who has
consented to the interception; and
(b) surveillance by means of that interception has been
authorised under Part II.
(3) Conduct consisting in the interception of a communication is
authorised by this section if-
(a) it is conduct by or on behalf of a person who provides a postal
service or a telecommunications service; and
(b) it takes place for purposes connected with the provision or
operation of that service or with the enforcement, in relation to that
service, of any enactment relating to the use of postal services or
telecommunications services.
(4) Conduct by any person consisting in the interception of a
communication in the course of its transmission by means of wireless
telegraphy is authorised by this section if it takes place-
(a) with the authority of a designated person under section 5 of the
Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 (misleading messages and interception
and disclosure of wireless telegraphy messages); and
(b) for purposes connected with anything falling within subsection (5).
(5) Each of the following falls within this subsection-
(a) the issue of licences under the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949;
(b) the prevention or detection of anything which constitutes interference
with wireless telegraphy; and
(c) the enforcement of any enactment contained in that Act or of any
enactment not so contained that relates to such interference. |
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Power to provide for lawful interception. |
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(1) Conduct by any person ("the interceptor") consisting in the interception
of a communication in the course of its transmission by means of a
telecommunication system is authorised by this section if-
(a) the interception is carried out for the purpose of obtaining information
about the communications of a person who, or who the interceptor
has reasonable grounds for believing, is in a country or territory
outside the United Kingdom;
(b) the interception relates to the use of a telecommunications service
provided to persons in that country or territory which is either-
(i) a public telecommunications service; or
(ii) a telecommunications service that would be a public
telecommunications service if the persons to whom it is offered
or provided were members of the public in a part of the United Kingdom;
(c) the person who provides that service (whether the interceptor or
another person) is required by the law of that country or territory to
carry out, secure or facilitate the interception in question;
(d) the situation is one in relation to which such further conditions as may
be prescribed by regulations made by the Secretary of State are
required to be satisfied before conduct may be treated as authorised by
virtue of this subsection; and
(e) the conditions so prescribed are satisfied in relation to that situation.
(2) Subject to subsection (3), the Secretary of State may by regulations
authorise any such conduct described in the regulations as appears to
him to constitute a legitimate practice reasonably required for the
purpose, in connection with the carrying on of any business, of
monitoring or keeping a record of-
(a) communications by means of which transactions are entered into
in the course of that business; or
(b) other communications relating to that business or taking place in
the course of its being carried on.
(3) Nothing in any regulations under subsection (2) shall authorise the
interception of any communication except in the course of its
transmission using apparatus or services provided by or to the person
carrying on the business for use wholly or partly in connection
with that business.
(4) Conduct taking place in a prison is authorised by this section if it is
conduct in exercise of any power conferred by or under any rules made
under section 47 of the Prison Act 1952, section 39 of the Prisons
(Scotland) Act 1989 or section 13 of the Prison Act (Northern Ireland)
1953 (prison rules).
(5) Conduct taking place in any hospital premises where high security
psychiatric services are provided is authorised by this section if it is
conduct in pursuance of, and in accordance with, any direction given
under section 17 of the National Health Service Act 1977 (directions
as to the carrying out of their functions by health bodies) to the body
providing those services at those premises.
(6) Conduct taking place in a state hospital is authorised by this section if it
is conduct in pursuance of, and in accordance with, any direction given
to the State Hospitals Board for Scotland under section 2(5) of the
National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 (regulations and directions
as to the exercise of their functions by health boards) as applied by
Article 5(1) of and the Schedule to The State Hospitals Board for
Scotland Order 1995 (which applies certain provisions of that Act
of 1978 to the State Hospitals Board).
(7) In this section references to a business include references to any
activities of a government department, of any public authority or of any
person or office holder on whom functions are conferred by or
under any enactment.
(8) In this section-
"government department" includes any part of the Scottish
Administration, a Northern Ireland department and the National
Assembly for Wales;
"high security psychiatric services" has the same meaning as in the
National Health Service Act 1977;
"hospital premises" has the same meaning as in
section 4(3) of that Act; and
"state hospital" has the same meaning as in the National Health
Service (Scotland) Act 1978.
(9) In this section "prison" means-
(a) any prison, young offender institution, young offenders centre or
remand centre which is under the general superintendence of, or
is provided by, the Secretary of State under the Prison Act 1952
or the Prison Act (Northern Ireland) 1953, or
(b) any prison, young offenders institution or remand centre which is
under the general superintendence of the Scottish Ministers under the
Prisons (Scotland) Act 1989,
and includes any contracted out prison, within the meaning of Part IV
of the Criminal Justice Act 1991 or section 106(4) of the Criminal Justice
and Public Order Act 1994, and any legalised police cells within the
meaning of section 14 of the Prisons (Scotland) Act 1989.
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Crown Copyright Acknowledged |
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