2
Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (c. 25)
Part 1 — General privacy protections
(4)
This Part also abolishes and restricts various general powers to obtain
communications data and restricts the circumstances in which equipment
interference, and certain requests about the interception of communications,
can take place.
(5)
Further protections for privacy—
(a) can be found, in particular, in the regimes provided for by Parts 2 to 7
and in the oversight arrangements in Part 8, and
(b) also exist—
(i) by virtue of the Human Rights Act 1998,
(ii) in section 55 of the Data Protection Act 1998 (unlawful
obtaining etc. of personal data),
(iii) in section 48 of the Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006 (offence of
interception or disclosure of messages),
(iv) in sections 1 to 3A of the Computer Misuse Act 1990 (computer
misuse offences),
(v) in the common law offence of misconduct in public office, and
(vi) elsewhere in the law.
(6)
The regimes provided for by Parts 2 to 7 are as follows—
(a) Part 2 and Chapter 1 of Part 6 set out circumstances (including under a
warrant) in which the interception of communications is lawful and
make further provision about the interception of communications and
the treatment of material obtained in connection with it,
(b) Part 3 and Chapter 2 of Part 6 set out circumstances in which the
obtaining of communications data is lawful in pursuance of an
authorisation or under a warrant and make further provision about the
obtaining and treatment of such data,
(c) Part 4 makes provision for the retention of certain communications data
in pursuance of a notice,
(d) Part 5 and Chapter 3 of Part 6 deal with equipment interference
warrants, and
(e) Part 7 deals with bulk personal dataset warrants.
(7)
As to the rest of the Act—
(a) Part 8 deals with oversight arrangements for regimes in this Act and
elsewhere, and
(b) Part 9 contains miscellaneous and general provisions including
amendments to sections 3 and 5 of the Intelligence Services Act 1994
and provisions about national security and combined warrants and
authorisations.
2
General duties in relation to privacy
(1)
Subsection (2) applies where a public authority is deciding whether—
(a) to issue, renew or cancel a warrant under Part 2, 5, 6 or 7,
(b) to modify such a warrant,
(c) to approve a decision to issue, renew or modify such a warrant,
(d) to grant, approve or cancel an authorisation under Part 3,
(e) to give a notice in pursuance of such an authorisation or under Part 4
or section 252, 253 or 257,
(f) to vary or revoke such a notice,