Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT 1997 - SECT 547J

Scope

  (1)   This section applies if:

  (a)   both:

  (i)   a warrant is in force under Division   3 authorising an inspector to enter particular premises; and

  (ii)   the warrant relates to the Spam Act 2003 ; or

  (b)   a warrant is in force under Division   5A authorising an inspector to enter particular premises.

Application to magistrate for access order

  (2)   The inspector may apply to a magistrate for an order requiring a specified person to provide any information or assistance that is reasonable and necessary to allow the inspector to do one or more of the following:

  (a)   access data held in, or accessible from, a computer that is on those premises;

  (b)   copy the data to a data storage device;

  (c)   convert the data into documentary form.

Grant of access order

  (3)   The magistrate may grant the order if the magistrate is satisfied that:

  (a)   there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that a thing connected with a breach of the Spam Act 2003 is held in, or is accessible from, the computer; and

  (b)   the specified person is:

  (i)   reasonably suspected of having been involved in the breach; or

  (ii)   the owner or lessee of the computer; or

  (iii)   an employee of the owner or lessee of the computer; and

  (c)   the specified person has relevant knowledge of:

  (i)   the computer or a computer network of which the computer forms a part; or

  (ii)   measures applied to protect data held in, or accessible from, the computer.

Offence

  (4)   A person commits an offence if:

  (a)   the person is subject to an order under this section; and

  (b)   the person omits to do an act; and

  (c)   the omission breaches the order.

Penalty:   Imprisonment for 6 months.

Definitions

  (5)   In this section:

"data" includes:

  (a)   information in any form; and

  (b)   any program (or part of a program).

"data held in a computer" includes:

  (a)   data held in any removable data storage device for the time being held in a computer; and

  (b)   data held in a data storage device on a computer network of which the computer forms a part.

"data storage device" means a thing containing, or designed to contain, data for use by a computer.

  (6)   This section does not, by implication, affect the meaning of the expression data when used in any other provision of this Act or the Telecommunications (Consumer Protection and Service Standards) Act 1999 .