No hiding place for fly tippers

[Roland Perry]

In article <002301c86672$12faa460$891a313e@Powerstation>, M J D Brown 
<mjdb@dorevale.demon.co.uk> writes
>In his apologia published in the Daily Telegraph on Friday 1st February
>Sir Paul Kennedy claims that reports of phones being tapped at the rate
>of 1000 each day are misleading and likely to cause unnecessary concern.
>He bases that assertion on the narrow legalistic distinction between
>interception and the collection of data.

Narrow! That just shows how misunderstood this area is.

>Readers of this list are, of course, entirely familiar with such
>logic-chopping spin, but I suggest that the proverbial man on the
>Clapham omnibus will recognise that his private business is being
>'intercepted' when information provided solely for the purpose of making
>and paying for a communications service is obtained by people for whom
>such information is not intended.  Nor is it legitimate for Kennedy to
>arrogate unto himself a judgement as to whether people's concern are
>unnecessary; that judgement belongs solely to the people who are the
>subjects of official intrusion.

The man on the bus has a general understanding of what may be involved 
when tapping his phone, and listening to his conversations.

I seriously doubt that they really think that a reverse lookup of their 
phone number is anything like as intrusive.

-- 
Roland Perry