Equipment interference code of practice

Footnotes

1. SG/2017/278

2. A supervisory authority is the IPC or any other Judicial Commissioner.

3. Including equipment.

4. Up to date information on data protection law can be found at www.ico.org.uk

5. Systems data that is necessary for the provision and operation of a service or system also includes the data necessary for the storage of communications and other information on relevant systems. Systems data held on a relevant system may be obtained via an equipment interference warrant under Part 5 of the Act.

6. See section 107 of the Act.

7. Use of targeted equipment interference to prevent death or injury to a person's physical or mental health or of mitigating any injury or damage to a person's physical or mental health will only be used in exceptional circumstances. In these circumstances targeted equipment interference techniques will most likely be used to assist in locating vulnerable persons. Accordingly, the Act limits the use of targeted equipment interference for this purpose, making it available to Police Scotland but not the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner. Section 106 of the Act restricts this power to Police Scotland.

8. References to a member of a relevant legislature include references to a member of the House of Commons or the House of Lords, a UK member of the European Parliament, and members of the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh Assembly and the Northern Ireland Assembly.

9. Eligible subject-matters of equipment interference warrants are set out in section 101.

10. The Police Service of Scotland is the only relevant agency in Scotland able to carry out warranted interception of communications.

11. Live communication includes communications in the course of their transmission, but not stored communications.

12. See section 127 of the Act.

13. Before issuing a targeted equipment interference warrant a law enforcement chief requires to consider that satisfactory arrangements for safeguards are in force in relation to the warrant: see section 106 of the Act.

14. A members of a relevant legislature' means a member of the Scottish Parliament, a member of either House of Parliament, a member of the National Assembly for Wales, a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly, or a member of the European Parliament elected for the United Kingdom.

15. schedule 6 of the IPA provides that 'staff officer' also includes those members of the Commissioner's staff who have been appointed by the Commissioner.