Study calls for more mass data interception scrutiny

A report on legal safeguards against bulk surveillance regimes has urged more judicial oversight in protecting civil rights. The 8 November report by German technology thinktank Stiftung Neue Verantwortung says the recent European Court of Human Rights decisions on Swedish and British surveillance regimes suggest bulk data interception is likely to continue, meaning checks and balances must improve. But bulk surveillance methods, the report’s authors say, can be “difficult to reconcile with the fundamental principles of democratic governance, such as rule of law, transparency, and accountability”.