“On Approving the Requirements on Telecommunications Networks for the Purpose of Investigative Activity. Part 2. Requirements on Data Transmission Networks”

Pepeliaev Group advises that the draft order “On Approving the Requirements on Telecommunications Networks for the Purpose of Investigative Activity. Part 2. Requirements on Data Transmission Networks” (hereinafter – the Requirements) was published on the official web-site of the Russian Ministry for Communications and the Mass Media on 15 April 2010.

The requirements were adopted in accordance with clause 2, article 64 Federal Law No. 126-FZ dated 7 July 2003 “On Communications” (hereinafter – the Communications Law) stipulating the obligation of the telecom operator to comply with the requirements on networks and communications facilities established by the federal executive agency responsible for telecommunications, as agreed with the competent state authorities responsible for investigative activity or national security of Russia. This will enable these authorities to perform, in the instances established by federal laws, measures for the purpose of achieving their statutory objectives. The Law also stipulates that the telecom operator should take measures to avoid disclosure of organisational and tactical techniques applied in the performance of said investigative activity.

In addition, the Requirements in question develop the provisions of Order No. 6 of the Russian Ministry for Communications and the Mass Media dated 16 January 2008 “On Approving the Requirements on Telecommunications Networks for the Purpose of Investigative Activity. Part 1. General Issues” (hereinafter – the Order).

This Order approves only the general requirements on telecommunications networks included in the public communications network and on the allocated telecommunications networks for the purpose of investigative activity, whereas the new Requirements specify and supplement the Order as applied to data transmission networks.

According to the draft Requirements, investigative measures (hereinafter – Investigative Measures) are ensured through the installation of communications facilities, including software, which constitutes part of the data transmission networks.

The above equipment for the performance of Investigative Measures should be installed at the connection points of an operator’s telecommunications network, whereby access to all data transmitted through the operator’s telecommunications network, its selection and transmission to the control panel of the agency performing Investigative Measures is ensured.

The data transmission network should ensure the technical feasibility of the transmission of the following data to the control panel of the investigation agency through controlled connections (messages):

• on user-dedicated network addresses (IP addresses) before the network addresses are transfigured and the first data package is transmitted
• on the completion of controlled connections
• on the data contained in the controlled connection (message), including information relating to the provision of telecommunications services and the order in which the information was received from the user’s (terminal) equipment or from the connected telecommunications network
• on the location of the user’s (terminal) equipment, if it is technically feasible for this network.
  

The appendices to the Requirements contain the list of interfaces used to ensure access of the equipment applied for the purpose of Investigative Measures to the data transmitted through the operator’s telecommunications network, as well as three formats of messages from the control server and authorisation of the user-dedicated network addresses and the completion of the connection.

The above Requirements will make it far easier for the competent authorities to look for information about the users of data transmission networks. At the same time, they will result in additional expenditure for providers attributable to the need to store large volumes of information.

The Requirements have been submitted to the Russian Ministry of Justice for registration.

For further information, please contact:

Natalya Ivashchenko, Head of group "Telecommunications", at: (495) 967-0007 or by n.ivashchenko@pgplaw.ru