Draconian Internet Laws in Australia

The Internet is a revolutionary new medium that has provided people the world round a new medium of communication. In "cyberspace" as the Internet has been nicknamed, everyone can have a voice and it is relatively easy for one person to reach a very large audience. In addition to revolutionizing the way messages are broadcasted, cyberspace has also revolutionized peer-to-peer communication. E-mail and instant messaging have become a very convenient method of communication for many people, oftentimes replacing the use of telephones and conventional postal mail. However, the new methods of communication emerging on the Internet have also created a new communication medium for criminals. Many criminals have found e-mail to be a safer method of communication as opposed to the telephone as it is impervious to wiretaps. Instances of criminal use of cyberspace include espionage and drug trafficking. Cyberspace has also led to the rise of a new form of crime - cybercrime. Such crimes include child pornography and online stalking.

The Internet is an international medium, therefore, it cannot be regulated by any one government, however, as crimes committed using the Internet have serious ramifications within real world borders, it is necessary that governments of affected nations take safeguards to protect its citizens. The way in which governments prevent crime on the Internet, however, has become a point of contention for many people. For example, privacy advocates in the United States oppose the Federal Bureau of Investigation's implementation of "Carnivore" a program that reads all e-mail passing through mail servers on which it is installed. They argue that while Carnivore's purpose is to intercept correspondence between criminals, it invades the privacy of all Internet users as it allows the FBI to monitor all e-mail that passes through a system1. However, of all the nations implementing precautions to prevent cybercrime and crime committed with the aid of the Internet, Australia's are perhaps the most draconian.

On November 25, 1999, the Australian Parliament passed laws permitting the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) - the counterpart to the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) - to gain access to private computer systems and alter data for surveillance purposes without the knowledge of the owner of the computer. It is important to note also that the ASIO is not subject to the Privacy Act of 1988. This makes many Australian citizens uneasy that the government may now not only to monitor their actions on the Internet but also to compromise their computer systems.