Telecommunications Act 1997

The Attorney‑General may, in accordance with a request made by the Director‑General of Security or the chief officer of an interception agency, give a designated communications provider a written notice, to be known as a technical capability notice, that requires the provider to do one or more specified acts or things that:

are in connection with any or all of the eligible activities of the provider; and

are covered by subsection (2).

Section 317ZK deals with the terms and conditions on which such a requirement is to be complied with.

The specified acts or things must:

be directed towards ensuring that the designated communications provider is capable of giving listed help to ASIO, or an interception agency, in relation to:

the performance of a function, or the exercise of a power, conferred by or under a law of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory, so far as the function or power relates to a relevant objective; or

a matter that facilitates, or is ancillary or incidental to, a matter covered by subparagraph (i); or

be by way of giving help to ASIO, or an interception agency, in relation to:

the performance of a function, or the exercise of a power, conferred by or under a law of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory, so far as the function or power relates to a relevant objective; or

a matter that facilitates, or is ancillary or incidental to, a matter covered by subparagraph (i).

For the purposes of this section, relevant objective means:

enforcing the criminal law, so far as it relates to serious Australian offences; or

assisting the enforcement of the criminal laws in force in a foreign country, so far as those laws relate to serious foreign offences; or

safeguarding national security.

For the purposes of the application of this section to a designated communications provider, if one or more acts or things done by the provider:

are by way of giving help to ASIO or an interception agency; and

are in connection with any or all of the eligible activities of the provider; and

consist of either or both of the following:

one or more listed acts or things (other than an act or thing covered by paragraph 317E(1)(a));

one or more acts or things of a kind determined under subsection (5);

For listed acts or things, see section 317E.

The Home Affairs Minister may, by legislative instrument, determine one or more kinds of acts or things for the purposes of subparagraph (4)(c)(ii).

In making a determination under subsection (5), the Home Affairs Minister must have regard to the following matters:

the interests of law enforcement;

the interests of national security;

the objects of this Act;

the likely impact of the determination on designated communications providers;

such other matters (if any) as the Home Affairs Minister considers relevant.

The acts or things specified in a technical capability notice given to a designated communications provider in accordance with paragraph (2)(b) must be listed acts or things, so long as those acts or things:

are in connection with any or all of the eligible activities of the provider; and

are covered by subsection (2), so far as that subsection relates to paragraph (2)(b).

A technical capability notice must specify a person as the applicable costs negotiator for the notice.

See section 317ZK.

A person may be specified under subsection (12):

by name; or

as any person from time to time holding, occupying, or performing the duties of, a specified office or position.