The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has failed to pass a bill in its first reading that would have substantially expanded the role of Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) in ensuring the security of information in its battle against cybercrime.
There were not enough votes to pass the bill (No. 2133a), titled “On measures amending several laws regarding the strengthening of responsibility for committing illegal acts in the sphere of information security and battling cybercrime,” in its first reading during the Rada’s plenary session on Sept. 20. Lawmakers sent the bill back for redaction before it could be considered again in a repeat first reading.
The bill would have provided the SBU, in fulfillment of its duties, the right to obligatorily engage in counterintelligence defense of Ukraine’s information space.
The draft version of the law envisaged granting the SBU the right to receive access to information, which is processed in state electronic information resources, information-telecommunication systems of operators and providers and of other entities, which process electronic information, irrespective of ownership. The SBU would have been authorized to act to prevent loss of information stored in state registers, databases, including private and commercial structures used by state agencies, and to carry out measures to safeguard it, including by blocking access to the corresponding information resources.
The bill had envisioned granting the SBU the right during counterintelligence activities to carry out unannounced surveillance of areas not accessible to the public, residences and other private property, audio and video monitoring of premises, and to intercept information from mobile telecommunications networks, as well as to arrest (electronic) correspondence.
