Australian bosses to monitor workers’ emails
The Government of Australia has defended moves to give bosses in Australia new powers to monitor their workers’ email and internet traffic.
Attorney-General Robert McClelland is seeking advice on introducing new internet surveillance laws for businesses involved in critical infrastructure such as financial networks and water, electricity and transport.
This would mean companies would not have to request the consent of staff before monitoring their internet usage to detect potential security threats.
Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard said that the new powers would help protect against new terrorist strikes yesterday.
“We want to make sure that they are safe from terrorist attack,” she told the Nine Network.
“Part of doing that is making sure we’ve got the right powers to ensure that we can tell if there’s something unusual going on in the system.
“So it’s a national security move, not a move about an unseemly interest in people’s private emails.”
The Opposition seemed parted on the proposal.
Opposition Leader Brendan Nelson said the idea seemed to have merit but he would need to take further advice before supporting it.
“I think all of us would be concerned about the privacy implications of this,” Dr Nelson said.
“What I will be looking for is a full briefing from the Government and the relevant security agencies so we can actually have a look at what is being proposed, what the consequences might be for everyday Australians.”
However shadow Attorney-General George Brandis took a tougher stance, saying private companies should not be given the responsibility or power to monitor staff emails and internet traffic to detect security threats.
“We would be most concerned if, as appears implicit in Mr McClelland’s remarks, the effect of any such proposed changes was to impose on companies and employers a supervisory obligation which currently does not exist,” he said.
The Government has promised to consult widely before introducing the new laws in Parliament.