It said it considers this to be "the most effective option for ensuring a level commercial playing field for all CSPs [communication service providers] in the UK" despite the actual cost of compliance still being unclear.
If emails have been intercepted outside this legal process then a serious criminal offence may have been committed. In a written response, home office minister Caroline Flint said she did not believe it necessary to make a statement to the House of...
If last year's ruling had not been overturned, Inslee said, internet service providers "could read consumers' emails more freely, and law enforcement could abide by fewer privacy protections in order to intercept such communications".
The team will bring together law enforcement agencies, including trading standards and the National Criminal Intelligence Service, which will exchange information on new scams and co-ordinate their response.
The information retrieved included patient medical data, including histology reports and other information for a number of individuals, and a telephone contact list for the group of hospitals. BT also called for full hard-disk encryption.
The report reveals 24 interception errors were reported in the last nine months of 2006 - i.e.where data from the wrong person was intercepted. The commissioner does not, however, give his backing to intercepted comms being used as evidence in court.