Law Enforcement Requests - Telstra
Ben Fairless made this Freedom of Information request to Australian Federal Police
This request has been closed to new correspondence from the public body. Contact us if you think it ought be re-opened.
Dear Australian Federal Police,
I request a copy of all correspondence made via SEDNODE with Telstra Corporation Ltd and its associated companies ("Telstra") and I request a copy of any response provided by Telstra in relation to those requests.
I also request a copy of any document sent to or from the Law Enforcement Liaison team at Telstra in relation to any request for customer data or metadata, and the response from Telstra.
The above request is subject to the below exclusions:
- Duplicates of Documents
- Personal Information of individuals other then AFP members and Company representatives of Telstra.
Please treat this as a request for administrative access. If for some reason the request cannot be dealt with in this way, please treat it as a formal application under the Freedom of Information Act.
Yours faithfully,
Ben Fairless
Thank you for your email.
Please note that this is an automated response to confirm that your email was sent to the Australian Federal Police FOI inbox.
This FOI inbox is monitored by the information Access Team between 8 am and 4 pm Monday to Friday.
If you wish to lodge a request for access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), please ensure that your request is in writing, states that it is an application for the purposes of the FOI Act and provides sufficient detail describing the documents you wish to access.
If you are requesting personal information about yourself then please ensure you enclose a copy of your photographic identification.
Further details on how to make a valid FOI request can be found on the Australian Federal Police’s website at: http://www.afp.gov.au/about-the-afp/foi-...
The Australian Federal Police will acknowledge your request in accordance with the legislative requirements of the Act.
Information Access can be contacted on 02 6131 6131
UNCLASSIFIED
Our ref: CRM2015/241
Dear Mr Fairless,
I refer to your email below in which you seek access to documents under
the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the Act). I regret to inform you that
the AFP is of the view that your request will take longer than 30 days to
process. For the reasons cited below, the AFP seeks to extend this
timeframe and advise you of a decision by 3 February 2015.
Increased workload
The AFP is experiencing a significant increase in the volume of
applications at this time.
Complex in nature and further enquiries required
Your request is complex in nature and there is a requirement to undertake
further enquiries with the line areas to ensure all relevant documents are
located. Further, the Information Access team is seeking the advice and
recommendations of line areas to enable proper assessment of the documents
to form the AFP decision.
Pursuant to section 15AA of the Act and for the reasons listed above, I
seek your agreement to extend the period to notify you of a decision to 3
February 2015.
I would appreciate if you could please advise this office in writing of
your agreement to the proposed extension of time.
If you have any queries in relation to this matter, please do not hesitate
to contact this office.
Regards,
S BRUNETTI
A/TEAM LEADER INFORMATION ACCESS
OPERATIONS SUPPORT
[1]cid:image001.gif@01D01550.58EFC560
Tel +61(0) 2 61316131 Ext 142291
[2]www.afp.gov.au
Dear S BRUNETTI,
What steps have the AFP taken to complete my request to date? Have the documents been retrieved? If so, how many are there? Is there a way I can limit the scope of my request to avoid extending the deadline?
Yours sincerely,
Ben Fairless
Thank you for your email.
Please note that this is an automated response to confirm that your email was sent to the Australian Federal Police FOI inbox.
This FOI inbox is monitored by the information Access Team between 8 am and 4 pm Monday to Friday.
If you wish to lodge a request for access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), please ensure that your request is in writing, states that it is an application for the purposes of the FOI Act and provides sufficient detail describing the documents you wish to access.
If you are requesting personal information about yourself then please ensure you enclose a copy of your photographic identification.
Further details on how to make a valid FOI request can be found on the Australian Federal Police’s website at: http://www.afp.gov.au/about-the-afp/foi-...
The Australian Federal Police will acknowledge your request in accordance with the legislative requirements of the Act.
Information Access can be contacted on 02 6131 6131
Dear Jacqueline,
Thanks for our chat about this request. I accept your extension request due to the issues you have raised.
As discussed, instead of searching email accounts for company names, it might be easier to identify if any instructions have been provided by the companies on how to request such information, and restricting your searches to just those email addresses. This should assist the AFP in reducing the time it takes to search for this information.
I think SEDNode is a Web based request system, so I would assume that searching it should be a simple case of entering the "To" company.
Yours sincerely,
Ben Fairless
Thank you for your email.
Please note that this is an automated response to confirm that your email was sent to the Australian Federal Police FOI inbox.
This FOI inbox is monitored by the information Access Team between 8 am and 4 pm Monday to Friday.
If you wish to lodge a request for access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), please ensure that your request is in writing, states that it is an application for the purposes of the FOI Act and provides sufficient detail describing the documents you wish to access.
If you are requesting personal information about yourself then please ensure you enclose a copy of your photographic identification.
Further details on how to make a valid FOI request can be found on the Australian Federal Police’s website at: http://www.afp.gov.au/about-the-afp/foi-...
The Australian Federal Police will acknowledge your request in accordance with the legislative requirements of the Act.
Information Access can be contacted on 02 6131 6131
UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Fairless
I note that your request was due for finalisation on 3 February 2015. Unfortunately, this was not possible. Accordingly, an extension of time pursuant to s15AC of the FOI Act is being sought from the Office of the Information Commissioner. I will inform you of their decision as soon as it becomes available. In the meantime your request continues to be processed.
Sincere apologies for the delay in finalising your request.
Regards,
JACQUELINE ELLERY
TEAM LEADER - FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
OPERATIONS SUPPORT
AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE
Tel +61(0) 2 61312808 Ext 142808
www.afp.gov.au
UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Fairless
Please be advised that the OAIC has granted an extension of time pursuant
to s15AC of the FOI Act to finalised your request by close of business 20
March 2015.
Regards,
JACQUELINE ELLERY
TEAM LEADER - FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
OPERATIONS SUPPORT
Tel +61(0) 2 61312808 Ext 142808
[1]www.afp.gov.au
UNCLASSIFIED
References
Visible links
1. http://www.afp.gov.au/
UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Fairless
Please find attached correspondence in relation to your request.
Regards,
JACQUELINE ELLERY
TEAM LEADER - FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
OPERATIONS SUPPORT
AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE
Tel +61(0) 2 61312808 Ext 142808
www.afp.gov.au
UNCLASSIFIED
Hi Jacqui,
Thanks for our chat on the 5th of March. I'm confirming by email our discussion that you would speak with the relevant line area to determine how my request could be re-worded (such as by reducing the time frame) to remove the practical refusal reason.
I look forward to your email confirming how I can progress this request.
Yours sincerely,
Ben Fairless
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Fairless
In response to your requests, I understand that even a snapshot of
information would not assist you.
In our discussions, you indicated you were interested in what the AFP were
requesting from telcos and how the telcos responded. I am advised that
any requests for telecommunications assistance are made in accordance with
the legislative requirements. That is, the information must concern an
investigation of a criminal offence, be life threatening, involve missing
persons or the protection of public revenue.
As already indicated to you, a manual search for the telcos you have
specified would be onerous as the system does not have a sophisticated
search engine. A manual search would require many hours (over and above
which is considered acceptable for an FOI request) which may or may not
produce documents. If documents existed, heavy redactions for personal
information/business affairs/ongoing investigations/methods and procedures
together with consideration of any prohibitions outlined in the
Telecommunications Interception Act would need to be considered most
likely requiring many hours of redactions resulting in no information
being released. In this regard, the request remains onerous.
I understand also that stats are tabled in parliament each year regarding
the provision of information in accordance with the Telecommunications
Act. This might be of assistance to you. If you require further
information about where to find that information, please let me know. I
understand they are publicly available and can be found via Google.
Please let me know how you wish to proceed, that is, revise or withdraw
your request.
Regards
JACQUELINE ELLERY
TEAM LEADER - FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
OPERATIONS SUPPORT
[1]cid:image003.jpg@01D05B42.3218F550
Tel +61(0) 2 61312808 Ext 142808
[2]www.afp.gov.au
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
References
Visible links
2. http://www.afp.gov.au/
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Fairless
In response to your requests, I understand that even a snapshot of
information would not assist you.
In our discussions, you indicated you were interested in what the AFP were
requesting from telcos and how the telcos responded. I am advised that
any requests for telecommunications assistance are made in accordance with
the legislative requirements. That is, the information must concern an
investigation of a criminal offence, be life threatening, involve missing
persons or the protection of public revenue.
As already indicated to you, a manual search for the telcos you have
specified would be onerous as the system does not have a sophisticated
search engine. A manual search would require many hours (over and above
which is considered acceptable for an FOI request) which may or may not
produce documents. If documents existed, heavy redactions for personal
information/business affairs/ongoing investigations/methods and procedures
together with consideration of any prohibitions outlined in the
Telecommunications Interception Act would need to be considered most
likely requiring many hours of redactions resulting in no information
being released. In this regard, the request remains onerous.
I understand also that stats are tabled in parliament each year regarding
the provision of information in accordance with the Telecommunications
Act. This might be of assistance to you. If you require further
information about where to find that information, please let me know. I
understand they are publicly available and can be found via Google.
Please let me know how you wish to proceed, that is, revise or withdraw
your request.
Regards
JACQUELINE ELLERY
TEAM LEADER - FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
OPERATIONS SUPPORT
[1]cid:image003.jpg@01D05B42.3218F550
Tel +61(0) 2 61312808 Ext 142808
[2]www.afp.gov.au
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
References
Visible links
2. http://www.afp.gov.au/
Hi Jacqui,
Sorry about the delay in getting back to you. I think it's best that I withdraw both requests.
Yours sincerely,
Ben Fairless