Australian laws on storing phone, Internet records to change

CANBERRA: A parliamentary committee has recommended a major rewrite of draft laws that would force Australian telephone companies and Internet providers to store customers’ personal data for the convenience of law enforcement agencies.

A key recommendation made by the Intelligence and Security Committee on Friday is that the law specifies exactly what personal data is to be retained.

The bill to retain so-called metadata for a minimum two years has been drafted as a counterterrorism measure to help law enforcement agencies prosecute extremists who plot terror attacks online and through telephone communications.

But the bill does not specify what metadata is and experts differ on definition. The government wants to be free to set the definition without consulting Parliament after the bill becomes law.