CONFERENCE NOW LIVE: Threat Detection & Incident Response (TDIR) Summit - Join the Event In-Progress
Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

SecurityWeekSecurityWeek

Cloud Security

US, Australia Agree to Share Phone, Text Records in Criminal Probes

The United States and Australia signed an agreement Wednesday to ease access by their justice departments to digital phone and email records needed in criminal investigations.

The United States and Australia signed an agreement Wednesday to ease access by their justice departments to digital phone and email records needed in criminal investigations.

US Attorney General Merrick Garland and Australian Minister for Home Affairs Karen Andrews said the agreement would allow both to obtain “timely access” to electronic information vital for serious crime investigations. 

Coming under the US Cloud Act, the agreement will allow them to request and obtain suspects’ electronic communications from telecoms companies in the other country, without first going through a laborious process in the courts.

In effect, it means Australian investigators will be able to obtain the communications of a suspect even if they are held on a server located inside the United States and US justice authorities are not part of the investigation.

“The Cloud Act agreement between the United States and Australia will make our cooperation to prevent, detect, investigate and prosecute serious crimes more effective, and in doing so, this agreement will help keep our citizens safer,” Garland said.

Andrews said the pact would enhance probes into terrorism, organized crime and child sexual abuse.

“Until now, Australian agencies have relied on complex and time-consuming mechanisms, such as mutual legal assistance agreements, to access crucial evidence from other countries,” she said.

“Investigations and prosecutions have stalled and even derailed as a result of these arrangements.”

Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading.

Both officials stressed that rules of privacy and civil liberties would be followed, amid concerns that the Cloud Act is opening the door to unjustified searches of people’s private information not only by their own governments but by others as well.

“The agreement protects civil liberties, safeguards the privacy of our citizens and will ensure our own adherence to the rule of law,” Garland insisted.

The United States and Britain signed a similar deal in October 2019.

Written By

AFP 2023

Click to comment

Trending

Daily Briefing Newsletter

Subscribe to the SecurityWeek Email Briefing to stay informed on the latest threats, trends, and technology, along with insightful columns from industry experts.

Join this event as we dive into threat hunting tools and frameworks, and explore value of threat intelligence data in the defender’s security stack.

Register

Learn how integrating BAS and Automated Penetration Testing empowers security teams to quickly identify and validate threats, enabling prompt response and remediation.

Register

People on the Move

Jeremy Koppen has left Mandiant after 13 years to become the CISO of Equifax.

Engineering and technology solutions provider Amentum has appointed Max Shier as its CISO.

PAM provider Keeper Security has appointed Shane Barney as its Chief Information Security Officer.

More People On The Move

Expert Insights

Daily Briefing Newsletter

Subscribe to the SecurityWeek Email Briefing to stay informed on the latest cybersecurity news, threats, and expert insights. Unsubscribe at any time.