[LINK] Inquiry to examine Australian internet, phone surveillance

[Jan Whitaker]

At 06:44 PM 13/12/2013, Paul Brooks wrote:
>We can certainly argue about how many is too many, and drill down to 
>what they were
>for - but personally, I'm happy that some requests for information 
>can be warrantless.
>If I've fallen down a ravine, I'd like to know the rescue 
>authorities can ask the
>phone providers for my last rough location, and do it without a 
>warrant so it has a
>chance of happening before the phone battery runs out, or I die from 
>exposure.

I reckon emergency use like that is something that could be 
stipulated in the legislation and could be allowed through a senior 
police officer, possibly superintendent level, who takes 
responsibility for the action and can work with emergency services to 
find the person.

But then again, the missing person may not want to be found, so the 
circumstances even for reported 'emergencies' would need some careful 
thought. I can see scenarios where ex partners could use this as a 
ruse to find the ex who does not want to be found. So the police 
would need to make sure they kept that location confidential until it 
was determined the "lost" person really was.

Jan



Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
jwhit at janwhitaker.com

Sooner or later, I hate to break it to you, you're gonna die, so how 
do you fill in the space between here and there? It's yours. Seize your space.
~Margaret Atwood, writer

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