The union home ministry has in an unprecedented move asked all government agencies, in possession of “off-the-air” mobile surveillance equipment to return them to the home ministry and seize the same if found with any individual or private agency.
Stung by a series of snooping and phone tapping scandals, the Union home ministry has in an unprecedented move asked all government agencies, in possession of “off-the-air” mobile surveillance equipment to return them to the home ministry and seize the same if found with any individual or private agency.
An off-the-air device is one which enables monitoring of any mobile phone within a radius of five kilometres. The move is significant as it targets not just private, but state agencies (read intelligence and enforcement agencies) as well.
“As per information made available to MHA, the off-the-air GSM monitoring equipment viz GSM and CDMA technology, capable of interception of telephonic conversation, are in use,” the secret home ministry communication admits.
The home ministry has also taken such interception equipment (for both GSM/CDMA) off the Open General License, under which they were earlier being freely imported. These imports were earlier made on the pretext of “critical information infrastructure protection.” They have now been put under the “Restricted List.”
“All such equipment which were earlier in the list of Open General Licenses (OGL) have been taken off the OGL and kept in the restricted list for the purpose of import,” MHA’s confidential communication states.
Two recent cases explain government’s move. The first was the phone tapping of former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh, by a private company, without authorisation; and the second being the tapping and leakage of telephone transcripts of corporate lobbyist Niira Radia. The ministry has invoked penal provisions in enforcing the fresh norms.
“Usage of off-the-air GSM monitoring equipment for interception of telephonic messages is illegal. Any such unauthorised usage/possession amounts to violation of Indian Telegraph Act which will attract the penal provision. Therefore, in case, any state/agency is in possession of such equipment, the same may be returned to the DoT under intimation to this Ministry,” it said.
Under the present direction several intelligence agencies, including Intelligence Bureau, Research and Analysis Wing, Central Economic Intelligence Bureau, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Income Tax department, Enforcement Directorate and Central Bureau of Investigation, will have to surrender their off-the-
air GSM/CDMA surveillance devices.
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