British police formally turned into hackers.

British police were officially authorized, without obtaining a court order to check what information the suspect exchanged on the Internet. This decision caused outrage among human rights representatives, writes the newspaper The Times.
Ordinance to allow the police or MI5 intelligence to monitor network traffic user, was taken in December, the Council of Ministers of the European Union. The Times said that the decision was made without much publicity. Representatives of these departments have such a right before, but the new ordinance essentially expands the scope of its application. "Research" a personal computer can be initiated if the user is suspected of committing a crime, the term of imprisonment for which more than three years.
To begin to "cooperate" with the PC, the police can use several methods. For example, a user may be sent an email with attachment containing the virus. If you suspect it will open on his computer will be installed, then the police the content of user emails, text messages, sent through the rapid exchange of messages, as well as information about sites that people visit. The police can also intercept the data using a wireless network. Another permitted reception - to set on the user's computer program, "remember" what he had pressed a key.
A member of the Association of Senior Police Officers (Association of Chief Police Officers) Great Britain told that during the period from 2007 to 2008 the police had conducted 194 "hacker" operations, including the 133 - on computers in private homes, 37 - on computers in offices, 24 - on the PC on which you are working in hotel rooms.
Representatives of human rights organizations believe that a new ruling will lead to an increase in the number of such operations and create a police state. According to Shami Chakrabarti (Shami Chakrabarti), director of human rights groups Liberty, to prevent such a development, the police must obtain permission to use "hacker" techniques in court.