Proposed Directive (Information Systems) Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateBen Wallace
Main Page: Ben Wallace (Conservative - Wyre and Preston North)Department Debates - View all Ben Wallace's debates with the Home Office
(13 years, 9 months ago)
Commons ChamberMy hon. Friend makes an important point about the need for international co-operation. It is one of the reasons that we have ratified the European convention on cybercrime, which has in fact been signed up to by a number of countries outside Europe, including the United States. We take the important issue of international co-operation very seriously, and the directive we have decided to opt in to underlines and telegraphs that commitment, but clearly there is work to do with countries outside the EU as well.
Nowadays, investigators need access to current and historical data in order to achieve a successful prosecution in cybercrime and other internet crimes. In the past, the United Kingdom wanted seven years to be the key measure throughout Europe of the time that IT providers, banks and so on held back-data, so that we could get proper investigations going. Does the directive set a limit and require all EU Governments to place a duty on IT providers to hold data for the same time?
The directive is focused on the criminality and on cyber-attacks. It includes provisions on mutual co-operation, but it does not set the sort of framework to which my hon. Friend refers.