QUEENSLAND POLICE SERVICE

RIGHT TO INFORMATION & PRIVACY

200 Roma Street, BRISBANE QLD 4000

GPO BOX 1440, BRISBANE QLD 4001

Telephone:  (07) 3364 4666      Facsimile:  (07) 3364 4675      Email: xxx@xxxxxx.xxx.xxx.xx

Our Ref: RTI/30900
Your Ref: NA
14 September 2020

Mr Tim Norton
By Email Only: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx

Dear Mr Norton

Re:
Application under the Right to Information Act 2009

I refer to your application for access to documents received by the Right to Information and
Privacy Unit, Queensland Police Service (QPS) on 9 June 2020.  I note you seek access
to the following:

Subject:  I  am  writing  under  the  provisions  of  the  Freedom  of  Information  Act  to
request  the  documents  relating  directly  to  the  use  of  IMSI  catchers  owned  and
operated  by  the  Queensland  Police  Service  as  of  April  2020.  An  “International
Mobile Subscriber Identity” catcher (IMSI Catcher) may go by the following brand
names including Stingray, SimSucker, Kingfish, Harpoon, Amberjack, or Hailstorm.
In particular I request the following information: - Current number of IMSI catchers
owned  and/or  operated  by  the  Queensland  Police  Service;  -  Purchase  orders,
invoices,  contracts,  loan  agreements,  solicitation  letters,  correspondence  with
companies and other similar records regarding the acquisition of IMSI catchers; -
Marketing  or  promotional  materials  received  by  the  Queensland  Police  Service
relating to IMSI catchers;

-  All  requests  made  by  to  the  Queensland  Police  Service  by  companies  or
government agencies to keep confidential any aspect of the possession and use of
IMSI  catchers,  including  any  non-disclosure  agreements;  -  Legislation,  codes  of
practice, policy statements, guides, manuals, memoranda, presentations, training
materials or other records governing the use of IMSI catchers, including restrictions
on when, where, how and against whom they may be used; limitations on retention
and use of collected data; guidance on when a warrant
or other legal process must be obtained; and rules governing when the existence
and  use  of IMSI  catchers  may  be revealed to the public,  criminal  defendants,  or
judges.

As advised in this Unit’s correspondence dated 25 August 2020, the Freedom of Information
Act 1992 (Qld) was repealed in 2009.  It was replaced by the Information Privacy Act 2009
(Qld) (IPA) and the Right to Information Act 2009 (Qld) (RTIA).

Further, your request has been processed pursuant to the RTIA as this is the correct Act
under which applications which do not relate to the personal information of the applicant
are to be processed.
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DECISION

As a delegated officer under section 30 of the RTIA, I have today decided to refuse to deal
with  your  application  on  the  basis  it  does  not  comply  with  all  relevant  application
requirements1, pursuant to section 33(6) of the RTIA.

REASONS FOR DECISION

Sections 24(2) and (3) of the RTIA set out the requirements of a valid application:

(2) The access application must—
(a) be in the approved form; and be accompanied by the application fee;
and
(b)  give  sufficient  information  concerning  the  document  to  enable  a
responsible officer of the agency or the Minister to identify the document; and
(c)  state  an  address  to  which  notices  under  this  Act  may  be  sent  to  the
applicant.
(d) state whether access to the document is sought for the benefit of, or use
of the document by—

(i) the applicant; or
(ii) another entity; and

Example for paragraph (d)(ii)— A journalist makes an access application for a
document for use of the document by an electronic or print media organisation.

(e)  if  access  to  the  document  is  sought  for  the  benefit  of,  or  use  of  the
document by, an entity other than the applicant—the name of the other entity.

(3)  Also,  if  the  application  is  for  access  to  a  document  containing  personal
information  of  the  applicant,  the  applicant  must  provide  with  the  application  or
within 10 business days after making the application—

(a) evidence of identity for the applicant; and
(b)  if  an  agent  is  acting  for  the  applicant—  evidence  of  the  agent’s
authorisation and evidence of identity for the agent.
Examples of an agent’s authorisation—
• the will or court order appointing the agent to act as the applicant’s guardian
• the client agreement authorising a legal practitioner to act for an applicant
• if the application is made in reliance on section 25, evidence the agent is the
child’s parent (bolding added)

A consultation notice was sent on 25 August 2020 with a view to making your application
valid2. In that notice, you were advised in order to make the application compliant, it was
necessary for the following to be provided:

  Payment of the $50.80 application fee.

As at today’s date you have not provided payment of the application fee.

You were given an opportunity to consult with a view to making your application in a manner
which complied with section 24 of the RTIA.


1 As provided for in section 33(6) of the RTIA
2 As provided for in sections 24(2) and (3) of the RTIA

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As at today’s date no response addressing the identified validity issue has been received.
Your application does not comply with all relevant application requirements. Accordingly, I
am authorised under section 33(6) to refuse to deal with your application any further.

REVIEW

Please refer to the enclosed sheet which details your right of review.

Should you have any further inquiries concerning this matter, please contact me via email
on xxx@xxxxxx.xxx.xxx.xx quoting reference number RTI/30900.

Yours faithfully

(for) E Burns
Senior Sergeant
Right to Information & Privacy Unit

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Reviewing a Decision

If you are dissatisfied or aggrieved with a decision made by the Queensland Police Service
under the Right to Information Act or Information Privacy Act, you have the right to have the
matter reviewed. You may choose to either have the review conducted by the Queensland
Police  Service  (QPS)  by  Internal  Review,  or  alternatively  apply  to  the  Office  of  the
Information Commissioner (OIC) to conduct an External Review.

The  OIC  is  the  independent  statutory  authority  responsible  for  overseeing  the
administration  of  the  Right  to  Information  Act  and  the  Information  Privacy  Act  in
Queensland.

Important: Applications for Internal Review or External Review must be made within twenty
(20) business days from the date of the written notice of the decision.

Internal Review:
To apply for an internal review of a decision, you can choose one of the following options:

(a)
Post:
The Inspector
Right to Information & Privacy
GPO Box 1440, BRISBANE QLD 4001
(b)
Fax: 07 3364 4675
(c)
Apply online: https://www.smartservice.qld.gov.au/services/information-
requests/review.action

Your internal review application will then be referred to a senior officer for a decision.

External Review:
To apply for an external review of a decision, the application must:

  be in writing
  provide an address
  give details of the decision for review and
  be lodged with the Office of the Information Commissioner by one of the following
methods:

You can choose one of the following options:

(a)
In person: Level 7, 133 Mary St, Brisbane
(b)
Post: PO Box 10143, Adelaide Street, Brisbane Qld, 4000
(c)
Email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xxx.xx
(d)
Apply online: www.oic.qld.gov.au

Your application for an external review application will then be dealt with by the OIC (see
http://www.oic.qld.gov.au for further information).

Document Outline