We need leaders who are smarter on data

Since 2014, the Australian parliament has passed 40 national security related bills into law. The most recent was the Access and Assistance Bill, which was passed before Christmas. Despite concerns expressed by security experts, technologists, privacy experts, business, and civil society groups, both government and the opposition voted in favour of the bill.

The new laws provide for 'back door' access to personal electronic devices. If a security agency sees the need to access devices of a suspect under investigation, it can request assistance to do so from any business involved in the supply line of the software or hardware concerned. Creating a 'back door' interferes with the inbuilt security of devices, permitting security agencies secret access to targeted phones and computers.

© Jesuit Publications, 2019