Phone intercepts: concerns about leaked surveillance technology and legal protections

Information is captured with the help of mobile phone

There have been allegations that the right to privacy of the general public is being undermined due to the frequent leakage of private mobile phones and secret phone conversations in Bangladesh. Although there is a law in this regard, there is also a question of whether government agencies and forces follow it properly.

Most of the victims of the leaked phone conversations in Bangladesh have complained that only government agencies have the ability to intercept or monitor private phones. Most of the people whose mobile phone conversations have been leaked suspect and allege that these incidents can be leaked through any state agency.

A phone conversation of Nurul Haque Nur, a leader of the quota reform movement in Bangladesh and former VP of Ducsu, was leaked due to which he had to face a lot of controversy at that time.

In the leaked conversation, it is believed that a large amount of money was being lobbied for a business. মি. Haque’s suspicions are still being tracked on his phone. 

Since we do politics from the place of opposition, it has occurred to me many times that my phone is being tapped. Because some of my personal conversations – I have come to know in different ways that their information is getting exposed. This is not for common people, “he said. হক।

About the leak of a personal phone call, Mr. He said leaking people’s private phone conversations is a crime under Bangladesh’s law and against the constitution.

“My phone call was leaked. My political opponents have also used it. A case has been registered against me in this regard.

“But if what was leaked was a continuous conversation, people would know all about it. But it has been published with different fragments, which gives a misleading message to the people, “Nurul Haque Nur said. 

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“political opponents of most governments.” “”

In most of the leaked phone conversations in Bangladesh, controversial conversations, personal weaknesses or conspiracies have been made public.

These people were trapped as the phone calls were leaked. He was also socially awkward and awkward.

It has been found that most of the people whose secrets were leaked to gain access to mobile phones are political opponents or critics of the government.

মি. “People have accepted that the government will do it. But today the government is in power. But I think it’s going to be a big problem for them. The government should take this into consideration. ” 

There are concerns about privacy in the digital world.

Penalty offence

Meanwhile, it is alleged that there has been no proper investigation into any incident of phone call leak in Bangladesh. It is not known who did this.

But in Bangladesh, snooping on phones is a punishable offence in the eyes of the law when it comes to privacy of personal communications.

Supreme Court lawyer Miti Zanjana said it is possible to take action against such eavesdroppers or protect personal privacy if the law in Bangladesh is properly implemented.

However, Section 71 of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulation Act states that it is a crime to snoop. Whether it is talking about smart phones, or bringing Pegasus, or using any kind of spyware, that is not the issue here. Whenever a person snoops on the phone of two other people, it becomes a crime. “

Bangladesh’s Telecommunication Regulation Act provides for a maximum of two years in jail and a fine of up to Tk 50 million if found guilty of tapping phones.

Is surveillance legal?

According to section 97A of the law, the law will not apply to any official of the government-authorized intelligence agency, national security agency, investigative agency or agency in charge of controlling law and order.

Advocate Miti Sanjana said that in the interest of national security and in the question of repression of notorious terrorists or militants, various agencies can conduct surveillance freely with permission. But it has to be done in accordance with the law.

“They can do these things with the permission of the home minister and the state minister. But if these things are not followed, if the law is misused and later these sections are used as an opportunity for themselves, then the question of changing the law comes. It seems to me that if the laws that exist are used properly, and transparency is ensured, it will provide enough protection to protect people’s privacy. “

Meanwhile, the leak of phone conversations and surveillance of politically important people or people in sensitive positions has become a global concern.

Recently, there have been reports of the surveillance of mobile phones of journalists, politicians, businessmen and rights activists in different countries using the spyware named Pegasus, made by an Israeli company.

The investigation found secret surveillance of more than 50,000 mobile phones in about 50 countries around the world. A high-end smartphone is also reportedly missing from the man’s possession.

The name of Bangladesh has also come up in the discussion as a potential country to use Pegasus technology. Because a Washington Post report on an international investigation in this regard has named Bangladesh. But so far there is no evidence that anyone in Bangladesh has been subjected to surveillance through Pegasus, and the government of Bangladesh has not acknowledged it. 

More than half a million phones in about 50 countries have been hacked using Pegasus spyware

Mobile phones are an easy target

Technologists say that at present, most of the surveillance is done through eavesdropping on mobile phones.

In this case, it is possible to take almost complete control of the mobile devices of those who are targeted using spyware like Pegasus. This is very dangerous for anyone. Because the person whose phone is intercepted using this spyware does not feel in any way that the control of his phone has gone to a distant group or organization.

Technician Sumon Ahmed Sabir said: “Once they take control of the phone, it appears that they can turn on the microphone from a distance, see through the camera. So even when I’m not using the phone, with the phone next to me, they can actually see who I’m talking to, by recording their pictures or those words from a distance.

“In a word, the subject of personal privacy does not exist at all, if someone is infected with such a malware or spyware. “

In the world, one after another, advanced technology is being invented to monitor using information technology.

There is talk of a legalization of the use of these surveillance technologies to catch a notorious terrorist, or militant, in all countries of the world.

But there have been deep concerns about the way phones are monitored and leaked in Bangladesh. An atmosphere of fear has been created.