French Police Could Soon Access Smartphone Cameras, Microphones; Justice Minister Favors New Bill

The French police could soon access cameras and microphones if the new reform bill is passed into law. There's a high chance this could happen, especially since French Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti favors it.

French Police Could Soon Access Cameras, Microphones

(Photo: CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU/AFP via Getty Images) A police officer takes part in an anti-drug operation in the "Cite des Oliviers, a northern neighborhood of Marseille, southern France on March 25, 2020, as the country is under lockdown to stop the spread of the Covid-19 disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

According to Fox News' latest report, lawmakers in France plan to vote on the new bill on Tuesday, July 18.

This reform bill includes a provision that will enable law authorities and agents to tap into the devices of suspected criminals.

This means that they can access microphones, cameras, and location services of people's smartphones and other electronic devices.

French Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti was the one who presented the legislation in the spring.

"The goal of this law is clear: a faster, clearer, and modern justice," he said via ABC News.

According to Associated Press, France's new reform bill plainly demand that police procedures to eavesdrop can be done without consent or knowledge.

This legislation clarified that this is limited to suspected criminals linked to illegal activities, such as organized crime and terrorism.

The new French reform bill will focus on criminals doing illegal activities that are punishable by five or more years in prison.

French Justice Minister Defends New Bill

(Photo: ABDESSLAM MIRDASS/AFP via Getty Images) Police and emergency services intervene on Place Gutenberg after a shooting on December 11, 2018, in Strasbourg, eastern France. - The suspect who killed at least two people and injured 11 at Strasbourg's Christmas market was due to be arrested by police earlier in the day over a separate attempted murder, a source close to the investigation said.

Since the new reform bill could put the privacy of French people at risk, numerous left-wing parties criticized it. But, Dupond-Moretti explained why he proposed the new legislation.

The reform bill was introduced to make eavesdropping a high-tech alternative to other traditional surveillance methods of the French police.

These include wiretapping a suspect's house and vehicle. The French justice minister said that these long-standing surveillance practices are no longer available.

He added that they even put investigators in increasingly dangerous situations.

"Why would we deprive ourselves of new technologies? By crying wolf, you are no longer credible," Dupond-Moretti said when the parliamentarians explained their concerns.

However, many people, including French digital rights group La Quadrature's lawyer Bastien Le Querrec, still oppose the new reform bill. Mr. Querrec said that police abuse is spreading across the country.

He added that since the seriousness of a crime is decided by the police, prosecutors, and investigating judge, nothing in the legislation can stop the abusive activities of authorities.