The Cooke Report that examined allegations that the office of the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission was bugged has found "evidence does not support the proposition that actual surveillance... took place and much less that it was carried out by members of the Garda Síochána."
Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald welcomed the publication of the Cooke Report and said the findings will inform legislative changes relating to GSOC.
The minister has called for new "culture of co-operation" between gardaí and GSOC in light of the report.
GSOC suspected its offices in Dublin had been under surveillance after a British security firm, commissioned to conduct a security sweep, identified "three technical and electronic anomalies" that could not be "conclusively explained".
GSOC began an investigation after it suspected gardaí were involved but subsequently admitted it found no evidence of garda misconduct.
Retired High Court Judge John Cooke was asked to examine the sequence of events that led to the bugging claim and to assess whether there was any evidence of a security breach or an attempted security breach at GSOC.
The report was received by Taoiseach Enda Kenny several days ago.
The Government announced in February that the inquiry was to be set up following allegations of bugging at the offices of the GSOC on Abbey Street in Dublin.
The retired judge was also able to review and assess any evidence of a security breach or alleged security breach, including oral evidence as deemed relevant and to make recommendations.
Mr Kenny told the Dáil today that the Cooke Report will be discussed in the chamber next week.
He said: "I think that it is appropriate that we give all of the deputies an opportunity to read this and absorb it and make Government time available for statements on it next week and that is my intention".
(FOLLOW LINK): *The Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald has welcomed the publication of the Cooke Report and said the findings will inform legislative changes relating to GSOC.
*The Garda Ombudsman Commission has defended its decision to identify as credible two security threats, which the Cooke Report has now dismissed as not convincing and highly unlikely.
The Commission said in a statement this morning that it decided at a certain point that further investigations into the allegations of bugging at its offices were not reasonably practical, but that Judge John Cooke conducted further inquiries and has drawn more definite conclusions on two of the three anomalies.
Judge Cook described one of the threats as highly improbable and not convincing, the other he attributed to a mobile phone company testing in the area.
The third anomaly remains unexplained.
The Cooke report also described as premature GSOC's decision to investigate possible Garda involvement because the information did not indicate a garda had committed a disciplinary or criminal offence.
GSOC, however, said this should be read in view of the additional information that came to light in the inquiry.
Meanwhile, interim Garda Commissioner Noirín O’Sullivan acknowledged last night that the relationship between GSOC and the Gardaí needs to be more constructive, but Ms O’Sullivan said it continues to improve and the force is committed to building on that positive engagement.
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UPDATE: ADDITION: **Our customers have a right to privacy which is enshrined in international human rights law and standards and enacted through national laws. Respecting that right is one of our highest priorities: it is integral to the Vodafone Code of Conduct which everyone who works for us has to follow at all times.
UPDATE: ADDITION: **Our customers have a right to privacy which is enshrined in international human rights law and standards and enacted through national laws. Respecting that right is one of our highest priorities: it is integral to the Vodafone Code of Conduct which everyone who works for us has to follow at all times.
However, in every country in which we operate, we have to abide by the laws of those countries which require us to disclose information about our customers to law enforcement agencies or other government authorities, or to block or restrict access to certain services. Those laws are designed to protect national security and public safety or to prevent or investigate crime and terrorism, and the agencies and authorities that invoke those laws insist that the information demanded from communications operators such as Vodafone is essential to their work.
Refusal to comply with a country’s laws is not an option. If we do not comply with a lawful demand for assistance, governments can remove our licence to operate, preventing us from providing services to our customers. Our employees who live and work in the country concerned may also be at risk of criminal sanctions, including imprisonment. We therefore have to balance our responsibility to respect our customers’ right to privacy against our legal obligation to respond to the authorities’ lawful demands as well as our duty of care to our employees, recognising throughout our broader responsibilities as a corporate citizen to protect the public and prevent harm.
www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet-security/10880208/vodafone-governments-use-secret-cables-to-tap--phones.html
Vodafone is today publishing its first Law Enforcement Disclosure Report which will describe exactly how the governments it deals with are eavesdropping on citizens. It is calling for an end to the use of “direct access” eavesdropping and transparency on the number of warrants issued giving access to private data.
Mr Justice John Cooke concludes that "it is impossible on the basis of the technical opinions and available information, categorically to rule out all possibility of covert surveillance in the three threats identified by Verrimus.
"It is clear that the evidence does not support the proposition that actual surveillance of the kind asserted in the Sunday Times article took place and much less that it was carried out by members of the Garda Síochána."
In light of the report the minister has called for a new "culture of co-operation" between gardaí and GSOC.
GSOC suspected its offices in Dublin had been under surveillance after a British security firm, commissioned to conduct a security sweep, identified "three technical and electronic anomalies" that could not be "conclusively explained".
GSOC began an investigation after it suspected gardaí were involved but subsequently admitted it found no evidence of garda misconduct.
Retired High Court Judge John Cooke was asked to examine the sequence of events that led to the bugging claim and to assess whether there was any evidence of a security breach or an attempted security breach at GSOC.
The report was received by Taoiseach Enda Kenny several days ago.
The Government announced in February that the inquiry was to be set up following allegations of bugging at the offices of the GSOC on Abbey Street in Dublin.
The retired judge was also able to review and assess any evidence of a security breach or alleged security breach, including oral evidence as deemed relevant and to make recommendations.
Mr Kenny told the Dáil today that the Cooke Report will be discussed in the chamber next week.
He said: "I think that it is appropriate that we give all of the deputies an opportunity to read this and absorb it and make Government time available for statements on it next week and that is my intention".
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*Garda watchdog officials set up an elaborate sting in conjunction with the English security firm Verrimus in a failed bid to lure potential spies out into the open. The details of the operation raise fresh questions about the exact role Verrimus played in trying to flush out those who were supposed to be spying on the Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission (GSOC). As part of the counter-surveillance operation, a false document was drawn up. The document contained deliberately misleading information which would have been of interest to suspected eavesdroppers. It is understood that the document was then uploaded on to the GSOC computer system which Verrimus claimed had been subjected to cyber-surveillance.
The second part of the ruse involved a meeting that took place in the office of GSOC chairman Simon O'Brien to discuss the "information" in the document as if it were true. And at the same time, two Verrimus operatives were in Dublin on the day to monitor if any eavesdropping activity took place during the meeting. GSOC officers were also on standby to "carry out arrests in the event that the surveillance was discovered".
An official inquiry by retired High Court judge John Cooke this week found no evidence to support concerns that the watchdog's offices were bugged.
In response to Judge Cooke's report, Verrimus released a statement insisting that it was never its role to uncover the source of any possible surveillance, but simply to highlight areas susceptible to threats.
However, it is clear that two Verrimus operatives were in Dublin on November 18 and 19, 2013, when a meeting was arranged to take place in Mr O'Brien's office to discuss the spoof document which they referred to as the "legend". The meeting was attended by GSOC officers and two GSOC commissioners, Carmel Foley and Kieran Fitzgerald.
Mr O'Brien, who was at home in the UK at the time, participated using the audio/visual conference system in his office – which Verrimus believed was being secretly monitored.
At the hour-long meeting the GSOC officials acted out their roles and discussed concerns about bogus errors in a previous probe for the benefit of those believed to be spying on them.
The ploy was devised after Verrimus claimed that it had detected the presence of a so-called IMSI device being used to set up a fake UK phone network for the purpose of eaves-dropping on GSOC. But Judge Cooke found that there was no such IMSI device operating in the area. The anomaly was explained by a mobile phone company which was testing a new 4G installation nearby.
The judge made reference to the sting in his report, which he said was done "with a view to drawing out the attackers". The firm said it was "never part of Verrimus's remit to investigate and uncover the source of any possible security threat".
Meanwhile, a Dublin-based security consultant who has studied the Cooke Report has questioned the actions taken by Verrimus operatives on October 20 last year.
On that occasion the specialists noticed that the watchdog's wi-fi had connected with the Bitbuzz network in an Insomnia coffee shop on the ground floor of the
same building. When one of the operatives went to the cafe he saw one person using a "handheld computer or mobile device". The Verrimus officials then spotted a "white van" parked in the street.
The security operative said he noticed two men walking together nearby on three separate occasions. When the mystery men spotted him, they turned and walked away.
The specialists also claimed that they were photographed by an individual when they checked in at Dublin Airport for their flight back to London.
But a security consultant said it was "extraordinary" that there was no mention in the report of what actions were taken by either GSOC or Verrimus to identify the supposed spies.
There was nothing in the report to suggest that GSOC had sought CCTV footage in the area, or that the registration of the van had been taken down, said the security consultant, who did not wish to be named.
GSOC refused to comment on its responses. "We don't really think it is right to get into a discussion about the details of the investigation," the spokesperson said.
Irish Independent
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