In a new effort to strengthen the police’s abilities to combat crime on digital platforms, Minister of Justice Peter Hummelgaard has initiated an investigation to assess the possibility of expanding the police’s powers to take over accounts on encrypted social media and messaging services. This step comes in response to the increasing use of advanced technology among criminals to hide their activities. The Ministry of Justice has announced that a new committee, consisting of experts in criminal justice, will evaluate whether there is a need to give the police more tools to address the challenges that encryption and digital communication present in investigative work. The committee, which includes members from the Judges’ Association, the Association of Junior Judges, the Public Prosecutor, and the National Police, will begin their work in 2024.
“It is essential that our police forces are equipped to keep up with technological advancements and effectively investigate crime in the digital age,” says Peter Hummelgaard. He emphasizes the importance of ensuring that criminals do not feel safe behind the screen of new technology. The committee’s work will include an assessment of legislation regarding coercive measures such as wiretapping and the seizure of digital information. This could potentially also involve taking over accounts on social media and gaining access to encrypted communication services like WhatsApp, which uses end-to-end encryption. This type of encryption ensures that only the sender and receiver can read the messages, significantly complicating the police’s work.
Although the Ministry of Justice has not specified an exact timeframe for when the committee’s work is expected to be completed, it is clear that the result will have significant implications for future investigative methods in Denmark.