Reporting requirements

73.111 Part 2–7 of the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act sets out various record-keeping and reporting requirements relating to intercepted telecommunications. For example, ss 80 and 81 of the Act require the chief officer of an agency to keep records of a number of matters, including particulars of each application for a warrant and details of each warrant issued to the agency.

73.112 Section 100 sets out a number of reporting requirements about agency warrants. Such requirements include: relevant statistics about applications for warrants that an agency made during the year; how many warrants included specified conditions or restrictions relating to the warrant; and the total number of telecommunication services intercepted under particular warrants.

73.113 Section 102 in Part 2–8 of the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act requires a report to set out information about the effectiveness of warrants, including the number of arrests and convictions recorded on the basis of lawfully intercepted information.

73.114 The reporting requirements relating to the use of stored communication warrants are contained in Part 3–5 of the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act. Section 151 requires an agency to keep records on various matters, including each stored communication warrant issued to the agency. Section 163 requires agencies to report on the effectiveness of stored communication warrants.^[137]

73.115 In DP 72, the ALRC noted that the record-keeping and reporting requirements relating to access to stored communications are significantly less onerous than the requirements that apply to the interception of communications. For example, agencies are not required to provide as much information on the use and effectiveness of stored communication warrants as they are for interception warrants.^[138] The ALRC asked whether the regime relating to access to stored communications under the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act should be amended to provide further reporting requirements relating to the use and effectiveness of stored communications warrants.^[139]

Submissions and consultations

73.116 A number of stakeholders submitted that the reporting requirements relating to the use of stored communication warrants should be at least as rigorous as those relating to interception warrants.^[140]

73.117 Other stakeholders did not support additional reporting requirements in relation to stored communication warrants.^[141] For example, the AGD submitted that the annual reporting requirements for stored communications warrants and their effectiveness are similar to the requirements that apply to telecommunications interception warrants.^[142]

ALRC’s view

73.118 Sections 151 and 163 of the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act should be amended to provide for reporting requirements in relation to the use of stored communication warrants that are equivalent to the interception warrant reporting requirements under Part 2–7 and s 102 of the Act.^[143] Reporting obligations are vital to providing adequate transparency and accountability of the interception and access regime set out under the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act. The ALRC can see no reason why stored communications warrants should be subject to less onerous reporting requirements than interception warrants, particularly given that more agencies can make applications for stored communications warrants than interception warrants.