MR JUSTICE BURTON
Approved Judgment
Human Rights Watch & Ors v SoS for the Foreign &
Commonwealth Office & Ors
such that it was retained for materially longer than permitted under those policies.
The Tribunal recorded:“We are satisfied however that the product was not accessed
after the expiry of the relevant retention time limit, and the
breach can thus be characterised as technical, though (as
recognised by the Tribunal in the Belhadj Judgment) requiring
a determination to be made. Though technical, the breach
constitutes both “conduct” about which complaint may
properly be made under section 65 of RIPA and a breach of
Article 8 ECHR… The Tribunal is satisfied that Amnesty… has
not suffered material detriment, damage or prejudice as a
result of the breach, and that the foregoing Open
Determination constitutes just satisfaction, so there will be no
award of compensation.”
6.
In respect of another claimant, the Legal Resources Centre, South Africa, the Tribunal
found (paragraph 15 of Liberty/Privacy No 3) that communications from an email
address associated with it were intercepted and selected for examination pursuant to
s.8(4) RIPA: the Tribunal was satisfied that the interception was lawful and
proportionate and that the selection for examination was proportionate, but that the
procedure laid down by GCHQ’s internal policies for selection of the communications
for examination was, in error, not followed in that case. Hence, as in the case of
Amnesty, that amounted to “conduct” about which complaint was properly made
under s.65 RIPA, and a breach of Article 8 ECHR, but the Tribunal was again
satisfied that no use whatever was made by the intercepting agency of any intercepted
material, nor any record retained, that no detriment or damage was suffered and that
no compensation was required.
7.
The origin of the applications now before us is what has been called the Privacy
International Campaign, and in particular an entry on Privacy International’s website,
to the following effect:“Did GCHQ Illegally Spy on You?
Have you ever made a phone call, sent an email, or, you know,
used the internet? Of course you have!
Chances are, at some point, your communications were swept
up by the U.S National Security Agency’s mass surveillance
program and passed on to Britain’s intelligence agency
GCHQ.
Because of our recent victory against GCHQ in court, now
anyone in the world – yes, ANYONE, including you – can try to
find out if GCHQ illegally had access to information about you
from the NSA.
Make your claim using one of the options below, and send it to
the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) to try and find out if
GCHQ illegally spied on you.