BIG BROTHER WATCH AND OTHERS v. THE UNITED KINGDOM JUDGMENT
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62. By virtue of section 9 of RIPA, a warrant issued in the interests of
national security or for safeguarding the economic well-being of the United
Kingdom shall cease to have effect at the end of six months, and a warrant
issued for the purpose of detecting serious crime shall cease to have effect
after three months. At any time before the end of those periods, the
Secretary of State may renew the warrant (for periods of six and three
months respectively) if he believes that the warrant continues to be
necessary on grounds falling within section 5(3). The Secretary of State
shall cancel an interception warrant if he is satisfied that the warrant is no
longer necessary on grounds falling within section 5(3).
63. Pursuant to section 5(6), the conduct authorised by an interception
warrant shall be taken to include the interception of communications not
identified by the warrant if necessary to do what is expressly authorised or
required by the warrant; and the obtaining of related communications data.
64. Section 21(4) defines “communications data” as
“(a) any traffic data comprised in or attached to a communication (whether by the
sender or otherwise) for the purposes of any postal service or telecommunication
system by means of which it is being or may be transmitted;
(b) any information which includes none of the contents of a communication (apart
from any information falling within paragraph (a)) and is about the use made by any
person—
i. of any postal service or telecommunications service; or
ii. in connection with the provision to or use by any person of any
telecommunications service, of any part of a telecommunication system;
(c) any information not falling within paragraph (a) or (b) that is held or obtained,
in relation to persons to whom he provides the service, by a person providing a postal
service or telecommunications service.”
65. The March 2015 Acquisition and Disclosure of Communications
Data Code of Practice refers to these three categories as “traffic data”,
“service use information”, and “subscriber information”. Section 21(6) of
RIPA further defines “traffic data” as data which identifies the person,
apparatus, location or address to or from which a communication is
transmitted, and information about a computer file or program accessed or
run in the course of sending or receiving a communication.
66. Section 20 defines “related communications data”, in relation to a
communication intercepted in the course of its transmission by means of a
postal service or telecommunication system, as communications data
“obtained by, or in connection with, the interception”; and which “relates to
the communication or to the sender or recipient, or intended recipient, of the
communication”.