Public Bodies

The power behind Source and Covert Surveillance activities

Public Bodies

Evidence gathered from surveillance operations is vital to ensuring prosecutions against alleged criminal activities such as benefits cheats and fraudsters are successful.

According to Local Government Agency (LGA) research, 5727 benefits cheats were successfully prosecuted in 2007 and the amount of taxpayer cash defrauded from councils fell from £500m in 2002 to just £180m - with successful prosecutions for housing and council tax benefit fraud more than trebling in the same period - an increase attributed to the surveillance powers granted to councils under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) in 2003.

Successfully used by Police forces and Law Enforcement Agencies in the UK and Ireland, the Charter Source and Covert Authorities System can also be adopted by Public Bodies and Local Authorities to provide an efficient and RIPA compliant approach to undercover surveillance activities.

Designed to automate authorities applications in line with an organisation's internal policies and processes - the Charter Source and Covert Authorities System ensures public organisations remain RIPA compliant in the handling of directed surveillance techniques and requests.

Today, with increased public and media interest in the use of surveillance powers by councils under RIPA, it is more important than ever for organisations to demonstrate that their usage of surveillance or covert monitoring is necessary and proportionate to prevent or detect a criminal offence.

By implementing the Charter Source and Covert Authorities System, public organisations can be confident that they are complying with the regulatory requirements of RIPA, with the capability to satisfy Office of Surveillance Commissioners (OSC) audits by evidencing their surveillance requests, approvals and activities.

Find out more