134
Investigatory Powers Commissioner’s Annual Report 2019
Reportable errors
18.31
The majority of CD errors reported by law enforcement agencies and public bodies
continue to relate to the actions of a SPoC or the applicant (74%), as shown by the tables
below. This is consistent with the reported errors for 2018 and is broadly proportionate to
the roles these individuals play in handling CD applications and data.
Table 4: Reportable communications data errors in 2018 and 2019
Cause of error
Number of errors
2018
2019
Law Enforcement Agencies
758
755
Telecommunications Operator
12758
230
Workflow (Other 2018)
13
14
Other Public Authorities
5
12
Total
59
903
1011*
*Six errors were identified during IPCO inspections and subsequently reported.
Figure 27: Communications data errors by responsible authority or system, 2019
23 14
230
367
Applicant
Single Point of Contact
Telecommunications Operator
Designated person
Workflow
377
18.32
As shown by the following breakdown, the biggest single cause of an error rests with the
applicant seeking CD upon an incorrect identifier (telephone number, username, email
address or internet protocol (IP) address). Equating to over 30% of all LEA errors, the causes
are many and varied with the overall percentage of Internet Protocol Address Resolution
(IPAR) errors remaining unchanged when compared to 2018.
58 Last year this figure was shown as 126 in 2018 – one error has been re-categorised.
59 This figure was shown as 6 in 2018 – one error has been re-categorised.