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Content Type: Long Read

Q&A: European Court of Human Rights Rules UK Mass Surveillance Laws Violate Rights

Friday, September 14, 2018

Yesterday, the European Court of Human Rights issued its judgement in Big Brother Watch & Others V. the UK. Below, we answer some of the main questions relating to the case. What's the ruling all about? In a nutshell, one of the world's most important courts, the European Court of Human Rights, yesterday found that certain UK laws about how intelligence agencies can spy on our internet communications breach our human rights. These surveillance laws have meant that the UK intelligence…

Content Type: Press release

New court judgment finds UK surveillance agencies collected everyone’s communications data unlawfully and in secret, for over a decade

Friday, October 21, 2016

Key points Bulk Communications Data (BCD) collection, commenced in March 1998, unlawful until November 2015 Bulk Personal Datasets regime (BPD), commenced c.2006, unlawful until March 2015 Everyone’s communications data collected unlawfully, in secret and without adequate safeguards until November 2015 We maintain that even post 2015, bulk surveillance powers are not lawful As the Investigatory Powers Bill is set to become law within weeks, we argue that the authorisation and oversight…