The Malta Independent on Sunday
Malta Security Services monitoring committee has not met since last June
The Monitoring Committee for the Scrutiny of Malta Security Services (MSS) has not met one single time since June last year, PN MP Jason Azzopardi said yesterday.
The Committee, which includes Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, Leader of the Opposition Simon Busuttil and Home Affairs Minister Manuel Mallia, is supposed have the fundamental function of overseeing the Security Service. Dr Azzopardi added that the annual report on the Security Service was not presented.
“Whereas certain interceptions are justified for reasons of public security, people need to be reassured by the fact that this justification is not being abused,” Dr Azzopardi stressed. PN MPs Kristy Debono, Dr Azzopardi, and Clyde Puli yesterday signed the online petition launched by The Malta Independent calling on the government to
release the total number of phone taps and email interceptions from 2009 to date.
“In 2014, people expect to live in a free society and not one where the State acts like a big brother and listens in on their private conversation,” Ms Debono said. “It is high time that the government comes clean in order to put people’s minds at rest on the extent of phone and email interceptions in Malta.”
“We want proper auditing of the entire system of interception and greater transparency in order to safeguard public concerns in this area,” she added.
Current Commissioner of Laws and former Nationalist MP Franco Debono had presented a motion on wire tapping to Parliament in 2011, which sparked a debate on the issue in June 2012.
The former PN MP asked for the issue of warrants for certain interceptions regarding criminal acts, and not issues of national security, by MSS to be removed from the purview of the ministry and, instead, fall under a judicial or investigative authority.
Election chances could be ruined if candidates are tapped: Cassola
Political candidates standing for election could have their chances of being elected to Parliament ruined if certain authorities spied on them, AD chairman Arnold Cassola said yesterday.
This would result in the government being aware of their ‘tactics’ and therefore would have an advantage over candidates representing parties other than the party in government for instance, “Therefore the individual who gives the green light to Malta Secret Services to intercept calls of individuals should not be involved in the political game,” he said.
In Malta’s case, it is Home Affairs and National Security Minister Manuel Mallia who signs MSS’s wire tapping warrants. In the case of wire tapping, warrant requests made by the Malta Police Force, it is a judge who signs them.
Speaking on Newsbook together with Wayne Hewitt, PN MP Clyde Puli, and The Malta Independent journalist Kevin Schembri Orland to discuss State surveillance, Prof. Cassola said that wiretapping has been going on for a long time, referring to the case of Evarist Bartolo and Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando who had claimed that their phones had been tapped prior to the divorce referendum. The two were involved in the pro divorce referendum campaign. Earlier this week, Mr Bartolo told The Malta Independent that he still believes his phone had been bugged.
Vodafone’s revelation earlier this month regarding 3,773 metadata requests sparked debate in Malta, but it is important to note that these requests dealt with lost phones and police investigations. Vodafone has no information regarding the number of legal interceptions, and has nothing to do with it. Government agencies use the network for interceptions but the communications operator itself has no control over it.
Mr Schembri Orland, who is following the issue of wiretapping closely, pointed out that originally the whole issue started internationally when Edward Snowden leaked certain documents which showed that international governments and US residents were being spied on by the US.
He said that The Malta Independent on Sunday took up the issue when an international communications company, referring to Vodafone, released a set of metadata records.
Following the Vodafone report, this newspaper launched a petition requesting Parliament to release the total number of phone, email and internet interceptions since 2009. The petition aims to garner at least 10,000 signatures. Until now, 600 have signed it.
The petition does not request the government to release names or content of individuals who are under investigation or were under investigation for that matter, Mr Schembri Orland said.
“All we are asking for is the number of interceptions from 2009 to date, in terms of calls monitored and messages sent.
“The reply we received from the minister when contacted to release information on the number of interceptions in Malta was that this is an issue of national security and therefore the government will not release such information.
“We do not agree with Minister Mallia’s reply, that this may undermine national security, when all this newspaper is asking for is the number of interceptions,” he explained.
“The petition is also suggesting that such information be made available to the public on an annual basis,” Mr Schembri Orland said.
He said that when Vodafone released this information, it turned out that the majority of requests to Vodafone came from law enforcement agencies, adding that the report does not reveal the number of interceptions but focuses on metadata requests.
“Countries such as Italy, Germany and The Netherlands release the numbers, so why hasn’t Malta followed suit,” he asked.
Prof Cassola said that the Secret Services should only tap individuals if they strongly suspect that the individual poses a danger to the public, referring to illegal activity such as terrorism.
“But it is unacceptable for individuals to be spied upon without the MSS having a strong suspicion of illegal activity,” he said. Wayne Hewitt said that the question which arises is who decides who is a suspect or not and therefore if he or she should be spied on in the first place.
“It is important to verify who is taking such decisions, that an individual is a suspect, and therefore clear parameters should be identified tied to such decisions,” he said. Prof. Cassola said that a person who is not involved in the political arena should sign such warrants and not the minister.
PN MP Clyde Puli said that the law relate to wire tapping needs revisiting and a proper audit exercise conducted.
“We need to rope in experts and review the law; I have no doubt that the law was created with good intentions but the time has come to review it,” he said.
Mr Hewitt said that if anyone is reading our emails our permission should be sought if one wants to really exercise the right to data privacy.
“Powers should not be in the minister’s hands but an independent authority such as a judge for instance,” he said.
Mr Hewitt said that he has had his emails monitored before.
“Without sounding paranoid,” Mr Hewitt said, “on one occasion I noted that certain emails were taking up to three days to reach my inbox.
“This drove me to stop using a certain service provider’s services since this was a strong indication I was being monitored.”
“Some people out there may not be aware their emails are being read but I could tell since I have the knowledge of how these things work due to the fact that I was involved in the implementation of certain software,” he added.
Prof. Cassola said one also had to look at the number of requests made to other phone companies by the authorities, referring to GO and Melita, since the report only focuses on requests made to Vodafone.
If GO and Melita were to give us an indication, it would change the whole scenario, he said, implying that the number of metadata requests are much more numerous than they are.
In a bid to highlight a number of coincidences, Mr Puli raised the issue of the Ombudsman, who was denied the right to information by the ministry to investigate AFM injustices.
The Ombudsman has filed a judicial protest claiming that he has the right to such information after the minister claimed that the Ombudsman has no jurisdiction to investigate such matters.
Mr Schembri Orland said that if the government released the number of interceptions it would be a first step in the right direction and the public would at least get a picture on the extent of wiretapping in Malta.
Mr Hewitt said that despite the fact that a server belongs to the service provider, users expect that they can trust the service provider from giving out any sensitive information on their customers to third parties.
He said it is vital that we do not post any sensitive information on Facebook for instance, adding that one can disable the system which identifies a user’s location by clicking on the ‘disable’ button for instance.