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| Civil rights group says GCHQ and NSA have targeted it illegally | |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| The civil rights group, Liberty, is demanding an investigation into Britain's intelligence agencies in the belief it has been a target of unlawful activities by US and UK eavesdroppers exposed by the Guardian. | The civil rights group, Liberty, is demanding an investigation into Britain's intelligence agencies in the belief it has been a target of unlawful activities by US and UK eavesdroppers exposed by the Guardian. |
| It has made an official complaint to the tribunal set up by the 2000 Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa), a statute which the whistleblower Edward Snowden has shown is wide open to abuse. | It has made an official complaint to the tribunal set up by the 2000 Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa), a statute which the whistleblower Edward Snowden has shown is wide open to abuse. |
| Liberty, which used to be known as the National Council for Civil Liberties, has been targeted in the past, notably by MI5. It now believes its electronic communications and those of its staff may have been unlawfully intercepted by the security services and GCHQ. | Liberty, which used to be known as the National Council for Civil Liberties, has been targeted in the past, notably by MI5. It now believes its electronic communications and those of its staff may have been unlawfully intercepted by the security services and GCHQ. |
| It has asked the investigatory powers tribunal set up by Ripa whether GCHQ has used the NSA's Prism and GCHQ's Tempora systems to bypass the formal British legal process regulating access to personal information. Liberty claims the right to respect for private and family life, enshrined in Article 8 of the Human Rights Act, has been breached. | It has asked the investigatory powers tribunal set up by Ripa whether GCHQ has used the NSA's Prism and GCHQ's Tempora systems to bypass the formal British legal process regulating access to personal information. Liberty claims the right to respect for private and family life, enshrined in Article 8 of the Human Rights Act, has been breached. |
| Certificates signed by the foreign secretary under section 8 of Ripa now seem to allow GCHQ to get round the restriction that only "external communications" – that is, to or from foreign countries – can be intercepted, because there is no way of distinguishing which messages drawn from the cables are external and which are entirely domestic. | Certificates signed by the foreign secretary under section 8 of Ripa now seem to allow GCHQ to get round the restriction that only "external communications" – that is, to or from foreign countries – can be intercepted, because there is no way of distinguishing which messages drawn from the cables are external and which are entirely domestic. |
| Foreign secretaries have intercepted communications in ways far beyond what the law intended, Liberty argues. It says it is concerned that Britain's intelligence agencies have been able "to evade checks and balances and monitor people in the UK". It adds: "They may be treating internet communications as international rather than domestic to evade closer scrutiny and receiving material from their US partners to evade scrutiny altogether". | Foreign secretaries have intercepted communications in ways far beyond what the law intended, Liberty argues. It says it is concerned that Britain's intelligence agencies have been able "to evade checks and balances and monitor people in the UK". It adds: "They may be treating internet communications as international rather than domestic to evade closer scrutiny and receiving material from their US partners to evade scrutiny altogether". |
| Referring to plans, currently blocked by Liberal Democratic opposition, to stockpile online data, James Welch, Liberty's legal director, said: "Those demanding the snooper's charter seem to have indulging in out-of-control snooping even without it – exploiting legal loopholes and help from Uncle Sam." | Referring to plans, currently blocked by Liberal Democratic opposition, to stockpile online data, James Welch, Liberty's legal director, said: "Those demanding the snooper's charter seem to have indulging in out-of-control snooping even without it – exploiting legal loopholes and help from Uncle Sam." |
| The tribunal set up by Ripa describes itself as the only body to whom complaints about the intelligence agencies can be directed. In a confidential briefing leaked to the Guardian, one of GCHQ's senior legal advisers, noted: "We have a light oversight regime compared with the US". | The tribunal set up by Ripa describes itself as the only body to whom complaints about the intelligence agencies can be directed. In a confidential briefing leaked to the Guardian, one of GCHQ's senior legal advisers, noted: "We have a light oversight regime compared with the US". |
| The tribunal in the past has also upheld the security and intelligence agencies' policy to "neither confirm nor deny" the veracity of complaints, a policy known as NCND. The tribunal, made up of "senior members of the legal profession", has the discretion to hold its hearings in private. | The tribunal in the past has also upheld the security and intelligence agencies' policy to "neither confirm nor deny" the veracity of complaints, a policy known as NCND. The tribunal, made up of "senior members of the legal profession", has the discretion to hold its hearings in private. |
| Kirsty Hughes, chief executive of Index on Censorship, said: "The government cannot continue to cite national security as a justification without revealing the extent of its intrusion and the legal basis for collecting data on this scale." | Kirsty Hughes, chief executive of Index on Censorship, said: "The government cannot continue to cite national security as a justification without revealing the extent of its intrusion and the legal basis for collecting data on this scale." |