NZ gets CALEA

[Blank Frank]

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/inl/index/0,1008,662392a1896,FF.html




                  Police to pay Vodafone $1m to
                  tap criminals
                  22 FEBRUARY 2001

                  Vodafone customers will no longer escape
                  surveillance after police complete a deal with the
                  mobile phone company that will allow them to tap
                  into digital phones.

                  It was revealed yesterday that police sought $1.1
                  million from the Government to pay Vodafone to help
                  them track calls.

                  Communications Minister Paul Swain said last night
                  that police had already been allocated the money for
                  the deal, expected to be completed in a few weeks.

                  The Crimes Act allows police to intercept all phone
                  calls, but police cannot decode the Vodafone digital
                  network, which uses encryption technology.

                  Mr Swain said New Zealand lagged behind other
                  countries that made it compulsory for all
                  telecommunications companies to be able to be
                  intercepted by police.

                  Policy considerations were being examined that would
                  make it compulsory for all telecommunications
                  providers to use networks that could be intercepted by

                  police.

                  "This would mean that if new telecommunications
                  companies came on the scene they would have to fit
                  the bill if they were using a network that could not
be
                  intercepted," Mr Swain said.

                  Police Association president Greg O'Connor questioned
                  yesterday why police should have to pick up the bill
for
                  the cost.

                  "In the United States and in Australia, the providers
                  have to provide access to the police and other
agencies
                  to be able to tap phones," Mr O'Connor said.

                  "In New Zealand it doesn't happen. In New Zealand
                  the telecommunications companies are creaming it off
                  police."

                  An amendment to the Crimes Act already allowed
                  police to intercept electronic communications,
however,
                  police needed to produce and enforce search warrants
                  in order to get information from phone companies.

                  According to police papers, last year police also paid

                  Telecom to enable them to tap their phones.

                  The issue was similar to one raised last year about a
                  $250,000 annual bill police received from Vodafone for

                  doing searches. "The reason we (the association)
didn't
                  talk about tapping digital phones until now was
                  because we didn't want to alert the criminals to the
                  fact that we couldn't do it," Mr O'Connor said.

                  Police national crime manager Bill Bishop said police
                  were still discussing possible legislation with
                  government. Police would not comment on their ability
                  to intercept electronic communications.

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