UK appeals court declares mass surveillance unlawful News
UK appeals court declares mass surveillance unlawful

The UK Court of Appeal on Tuesday invalidated [judgment, PDF] mass surveillance as part of legislation that was passed in 2016.

The legislation, the Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act (DRIPA), was passed initially as an emergency provision in 2014. After the legislation expired, it was expanded by the Investigatory Powers Act (IPA) [text], commonly referred to as the Snoopers’ Charter.

The IPA legalizes [JURIST report] targeted hacking by the UK security services and requires a record of all citizens’ web browsing habits for at least a year. The IPA has also been considered responsible for a provision which has allowed for the targeting of Muslims [JURIST report].

The court stated the IPA lacked safeguards such as an independent overseer, making the act unlawful. Because of the court’s ruling, part of the IPA will have to be re-written with the mandatory safeguards.