Policing Communications Data

The question of how technologies are used in our criminal justice system and what that means for individuals’ fundamental rights, has become a key issue which government, civil society, academia, and industry are all seeking to address. In recent years, we have seen an exponential growth in the use of technologically facilitated methods in every step of the justice process. Nowhere is the expansion of technology more apparent than in the realm of policing wherein the data derived from individuals’ everyday interactions is being mobilised as an investigative tool. Focusing on communications data which relates to the who, where, how, and when of our communications, this book examines the impact of the development of technologies, and the laws which facilitate them, on our right to privacy.

Law enforcement’s ability to use this data is governed by the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (IPA).This book argues that communications data governed by the IPA needs to be understood as an element of a larger system which is comprised of social, technical, and legal elements, each of which plays a key role, and which must be incorporated into the design of new legislative interventions in order to ensure fundamental rights are protected. It is only through doing so that the norms we ascribe to our data can be properly incorporated within the law. As technological capabilities expand and law enforcement powers increase, the frameworks which govern these activities must be scrutinised. This book presents several recommendations for the effective regulation of technologies which aim to speak to both the needs of law enforcement and to the protection of human rights.

This book will therefore be of interest to scholars of criminology, law, technology studies, and all those working at the intersection of technology law and safeguarding of human rights.