UK’s new security laws require companies to keep call records

World Today

New emergency laws will be introduced in Britain next week to force phone and internet companies to keep records of customers’ calls, texts and visits to websites. Prime Minister David Cameron says the fast-track legislation is necessary to defend national security against terrorists.

CCTV’s Richard Bestic reports.

UK's new security laws require companies to keep call records

In Britain, new emergency laws will be introduced next week to force 'phone and internet companies to keep records of customers' calls, texts and visits to websites.Prime Minister David Cameron says the fast-track legislation is necessary to defend national security against terrorists. CCTV's Richard Bestic reports.

Cameron said if the information were to be deleted, or no longer collected, it would seriously hinder the UK’s ability to fight crime and terrorism.

However, privacy campaigners said it was another encroachment on the rights of people not to have their communications monitored. Sources say the legislation is aimed at companies that provide telephone and internet connections.

The legislation outlines the legal obligation to retain “communications data” on their customers. This metadata includes logs of when calls were made, numbers dialed, and other information that can be used, the government says, in investigations. However, it does not include the content of the communications.