July 1999

50. The UK has been very successful in developing an effective working relationship between Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and law enforcement interests. The regular forum, currently chaired by the Association of Chief Police Officers, which includes a wide range of industry and law enforcement interests, together with representatives of the DTI and Home Office, has played a central role in developing and maintaining this relationship.

51. The forum has already produced a form for use by Police forces in requesting information from ISPs under section 28.3 of the Data Protection Act, which is now in the public domain. In addition, a best practice document on traceability will shortly be published, once it has been agreed and ratified by the ISP industry. The aim is for this document to become the industry standard for tracing those responsible for the misuse of the internet. The forum is also working on a number of other projects and is actively considering what more can be done to make the results of its work widely available in order to meet concerns about the transparency of its discussions.