science

Interception Modernisation Programme

Interception Modernisation Programme is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Interception Modernisation Programme rather than just read about it. In short: The Interception Modernisation Programme (IMP) was a UK government initiative to extend the government's capabilities for lawful interception and storage of communications data. It was widely reported that the IMP's eventual goal was to store details of all UK communications data in a central database.

Key takeaways

Interception Modernisation Programme belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Interception Modernisation Programme to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Interception Modernisation Programme from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Interception Modernisation Programme (IMP) was a UK government initiative to extend the government's capabilities for lawful interception and storage of communications data. It was widely reported that the IMP's eventual goal was to store details of all UK communications data in a central database. The proposal was similar to the NSA Call Database (MAINWAY) established by GCHQ's American counterpart NSA and the Titan traffic database established by the Swedish National Defence Radio Establishment. In 2008 plans were being made to collect data on all phone calls, emails, chatroom discussions and web-browsing habits as part of the IMP, thought likely to require the insertion of 'thousands' of black box probes into the country's computer and telephone networks. The proposals were expected to be included in the Communications Data Bill 2008. The "giant database" would include telephone numbers dialled, the websites visited and addresses to which e-mails are sent "but not the content of e-mails or telephone conversations." Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrat Home affairs spokesman said: "The government's Orwellian plans for a vast database of our private communications are deeply worrying." Despite this, the Home Office denied reports that a prototype of the IMP had already been built. Reports in April 2009 suggested that the government had changed its public stance to one of using legal measures to compel communications providers to store the data themselves, and making it available for government to access; then Home Secretary Jacqui Smith stated that "there are absolutely no plans for a single central store." The new plans were thought to involve spending £2bn on paying ISPs to install deep packet inspection equipment within their own networks, and obliging them to perform the cross-correlation and profiling of their users' behaviour themselves, in effect achieving the original goals of the IMP by different means. A detailed analysis was published by the Policy Engagement Network of the London School of Economics on 16 June 2009. The All Party Privacy Group held a hearing on IMP in the House of Commons on 1 July 2009. In 2010 the new coalition government apparently revived the IMP in its Strategic Defence and Security Review. The new version of the IMP was known as the Communications Capabilities Development Programme.

See also Data Retention Directive Mass surveillance in the United Kingdom National Identity Register Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000

References

External links Intercept Modernisation at the Open Rights Group wiki

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Interception Modernisation Programme

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Interception Modernisation Programme claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Interception Modernisation Programme before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Interception Modernisation Programme ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Interception Modernisation Programme

In research: Interception Modernisation Programme appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Interception Modernisation Programme in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Interception Modernisation Programme is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Civil rights and liberties in the United Kingdom, GCHQ, Government databases in the United Kingdom, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Interception Modernisation Programme outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Interception Modernisation Programme in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Interception Modernisation Programme means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Interception Modernisation Programme out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Interception Modernisation Programme in simple terms?

Why does Interception Modernisation Programme matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Interception Modernisation Programme?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Interception Modernisation Programme.