As a legally sanctioned official access to private communications, Lawful Interception (LI) is a security process in which a service provider or network operator collects and provides law enforcement officials with intercepted communications of private individuals or organizations.
LI implementation is required by the European Council Resolution from 19951 which allows for LI to prevent crime, including fraud and terrorism.
The ETSI specifications are now in use globally in a large number of countries that require the Lawful Interception of telecommunications, and well as the Lawful Disclosure (LD) functionality.
1. Official Journal C 329, 04/11/1996 p. 0001 - 0006 Council Resolution of 17 January 1995 on the lawful interception of telecommunications.
Bringing together the interests of governments and law enforcement agencies (LEAs) as well as mobile network operators and equipment vendors, our Technical Committee Lawful Interception (TC LI) develops standards supporting international requirements for LEAs, including the interception and retention of electronic communications data sent over public communication services. We cover the whole spectrum of interception aspects working closely with other ETSI committees and with the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPPTM).
At the core of an ALL IP current and future networks is the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) which provides an access independent platform for a variety of access technologies. IMS is being developed in 3GPPs Service and System Aspects Group, with the handover interface for lawful interception being developed in TC LI.
TC LI regularly updates its suite of standards by adding needed functionalities to the LI specifications. Other important work includes an overview of the necessary parameters for the handover in the form of a library for Lawful Interception (LI) and Lawful Disclosure (LD); this work describes national parameters and implementations in the context of the Inter LEA Handover Interface (ILHI) and cross-border data exchange in criminal matters, e.g. through bilaterally agreed legal assistance, or using the secure European Judicial Network. In 2024 TC LI published a new specification on an interface for Lawful Disclosure of vehicle-related data: this work defines an interface between two parties to make lawful requests for data relating to vehicles, and to respond to those requests where appropriate. The usage of the interface does not jeopardise the safety and security of the vehicles involved and takes into account the boundaries of the responsibilities of the parties involved.
TC LI maintains regular strong collaboration with our group working on Cybersecurity, and makes sure the LI and LD functions are performed in the context of latest technologies and related work within new ETSI groups.
A full list of related standards in the public domain is accessible via the LI committee page.