Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of the Cybercrime Legislation Amendment Bill 2011. Acting Deputy Speaker Adams, I am sure that, as a Tasmanian, you, too, will be supportive of these endeavours. I speak as the father of a two year old and a six year old. These boys will see more innovation in education by the internet in the next 10 years than we have seen over the last 100 years, I would suggest. There will be great opportunities but also more challenges and more threats at home in the living room.

The internet has improved the lives of many through better communication, immediate access to banking—no queues and waiting on a Friday afternoon—great innovations in e-health and education to name but a few areas, but the internet has also provided a new platform for criminals to conduct their malicious activities. They can come creeping around your house at night not with a mask and a bag of loot like in a cartoon but with a keyboard, reaching from their den in Russia, Nigeria or even Sydney and coming into your lounge room via your computer. Traditional crimes like theft and fraud can now be committed in cyberspace. Crimes like fraud, hacking, money laundering, theft, cyberstalking, cyberbullying, identity theft, child sexual exploitation and child grooming are now, sadly, widespread on the internet. Where the academics who invented the internet saw opportunities to share knowledge, crooks see opportunities to share in the fruits of our labour. These are not just bits and bits. These can be particularly horrendous crimes that have a horrible impact on their victims. I saw today in the media that even in my home town of St George there were people involved in this in a horrible way.

It is acknowledged that these crimes are becoming more common, but their extent in Australia is difficult to quantify, as much of it goes unreported. As a member of the Joint Select Committee on Cyber-Safety I was pleased to be a part of some good work in developing the report into cybersafety, High-wire act: cyber-safety and the young. That was a great report to be involved with and it certainly opened my eyes to some of the problems that are out there with the internet. The committee investigated the risk to safety and privacy for young people on the internet but—and I know this personally—there are lessons for all Australians, whatever their age. I think I learnt more at MacGregor State School about the internet than I had in 10 years of using it—and that was from the grade 7 students.

We know, in no uncertain terms, that more needs to be done to protect people's safety online. Just today my office received an email from a constituent who is the victim of internet fraud and harassment, which he encountered after visiting internet dating sites. This is just a lonely guy seeking companionship or romance who is suddenly the target of criminal activities. The hook was baited because he was lonely and, suddenly, he was the target of criminals. I understand, and I have heard this from other speakers, that this experience is all too common. Of course my office has referred his case to the AFP, but there are many who do not make contact with their federal member of parliament.

This is a difficult area of law. The global and borderless scope of the internet makes law enforcement in cyberspace convoluted and complicated. The exponential development of new technology is also a major challenge for law enforcement agencies, who do great work but are often struggling to keep up with criminal technology and innovation. That is why international cooperation in fighting cybercrime is so very important. To this end, the Cybercrime Legislation Amendment Bill will facilitate Australia's accession to the Council of Europe's Convention on Cybercrime. This treaty has already been signed by 40 nations and is the only binding international treaty on cybercrime. It puts in place common procedures governments should follow to combat cybercrime. As a signatory, Australia will be better positioned to prevent, detect and prosecute crimes committed on the internet, as Australian law enforcement agencies will have greater access to information stored overseas in the investigation of cybercrimes.

Australia already complies with the majority of our obligations under the convention. However, this bill amends a number of acts to ensure we meet all requirements under the treaty, particularly those relating to the storage and exchange of information, which are such important areas. Firstly, it amends the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 to enable authorised agencies to request the preservation of specific communications that are stored by a carrier. Law enforcement agencies will be required to produce a warrant to access this information. They will only be available for serious offences, with a penalty of three years in prison or a fine of $19,800, and for obtaining intelligence related to espionage, terrorism, foreign interference and border security. A notice to preserve communications will be automatically revoked after 90 days for domestic purposes. Notices for foreign purposes will be valid for 180 days.

Secondly, this bill amends the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act 1987 to allow Australian law enforcement agencies to obtain and disclose communications for the purposes of a foreign investigation. There are some good checks and balances in this process. There are a number of mandatory and discretionary grounds for refusal of a mutual assistance request; for example, the Attorney-General may refuse a request if the assistance is not considered appropriate. The Attorney-General is also required to report to parliament annually on the number of stored communications warrants obtained for foreign purposes.

Further, the bill amends the Criminal Code Act 1995 to expand the application of Commonwealth computer offences under the treaty. Finally, it amends the Telecommunications Act 1997 to require service providers to assist law enforcement investigations and enable them to recover costs associated with that assistance. This bill will ensure Australia becomes a stronger part of global efforts to combat cybercrime. I am particularly proud of this legislation as my wife has worked in child protection for 20 years. Unfortunately child protection and child abuse are so often cultivated and commenced through the internet with people looking at sites that are inappropriate. This is one small step in nipping crimes in the bud before they escalate. It ensures stronger international cooperation and empowers Australia's crime-fighting agencies with the appropriate tools to investigate cybercrimes. I commend the bill to the House.

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