PC PhoneHome's primary function will throw ISPs (Internet Service Providers) into the middle of the fray as they will be prompted to furnish law enforcement agencies with sensitive information that could help them trace stolen property.
Under the terms of The Telecommunications Act, ISPs and IAPs (Internet Access Providers) are required to provide "reasonable necessary assistance" to law enforcement agencies in upholding criminal law. In the case of PC PhoneHome customer registration details and calling line identification would be the most commonly requested data, but it is within the power of the act to reveal email transactions and network activity logs.
Mindful of their need to protect the secrecy of their investigation methods, Victorian State Police's computer crimes investigation unit commented on the forensic value of PC PhoneHome very guardedly. A spokesperson for the unit said that "on face value" the information would be sufficient to begin an investigation but was less sure that an IP address alone could secure a warrant.
ISP needn't necessarily require a court order, warrant or disclosure order to divulge customer information. It is legal for ISPs to produce information without a legal certificate if they deem that the request is reasonably necessary for the enforcement of criminal law.
"We're happy to co-operate with law enforcement agencies as long as we're fulfilling our obligations to our customers as set out in the telecommunications act," says David Bathur, Public Relations manager for Ozemail. "[PC PhoneHome] certainly would seem to boost Personal security however, as always, we will remain sensitive to the privacy concerns of our customers."
But where Ozemail's customers can exercise some influence over the company's attitudes to privacy, employees are less empowered.
Ralph could recall at least one Australian organisation that has chosen to deploy PC PhoneHome at an enterprise level without informing its employees of the monitoring measures in place on the laptops that are so entwined with their lives.
-I like the idea that it can run in a covert way," he said. "At the moment police have little or no data about laptop theft, this will give us all a chance to have it."
Working in network security Ralph is not insensitive to the concerns of privacy advocates but he is concerned by the idea that they might be used as a barrier to hide criminal activity.
"Sometimes you have to come up with a solution that search both sides of the fence," he said. "Someone's got to start paying these bastards back".
The effectiveness of PC PhoneHome will vary with the technical proficiency of the thieves pursuing your laptop but the covert manner in which it operates should outwit all but the most tech-savvy offenders. Light-fingered employees, snatch-and-grab attackers, airport lurkers and cat burglars will probably be the most vulnerable to discovery if products like PC PhoneHome become successful.
It may spell the end of the 'bloke-at-the-pub' PC channel and a few governement departments may end up with a little less egg on their faces, but what are we letting ourselves in for?
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