MI5 unlawfully collected the Privacy International and its staff data
The Privacy International, an international NGO, published a press release stating that the UK’s intelligence agency, MI5, has admitted unlawfully collecting and examining private data from the Privacy International or their staff members through two of their surveillance programmes, Bulk Communications Data (BCD) and Bulk Personal Datasets (BPD). Privacy International’s executive director, Gus Hosein, sent a letter to the Home Secretary and Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), expressing concern and requesting urgent action over the documents revealed during the course of Privacy International’s challenge to the BPD and BCD powers, which show that Privacy International was part of MI5’s investigations because its data was part of the UK intelligence agencies vast databases. The case is currently pending before the IPT. In the letter, the NGO also asks about the changes to be made in the Investigatory Powers Act, the so-called Snoopers’ Charter, provisions as a result of the recent ECHR judgment.