Labor under pressure to ban use of Israeli spyware in investigations of alleged welfare fraud

Technology news site ITNews reported this week that Services Australia had allegedly used the technology to investigate whether a woman receiving single parent payments had been in a relationship at that time and, despite charges not ultimately being laid, she was still pursued for repayments.

The government services minister, Bill Shorten, said he was reassured by the department about how it had been using the technology.

Edwards said that while the integrity of the welfare system was important, the prospect of technology being used in such a manner was likely to exacerbate abuse of women by former partners.

The continued use of spyware technology raises questions on whether Australia is contradicting a joint statement it signed in late March with the United States and several other countries arguing for strict controls on the use of spyware technology.

Kieran Pender, a senior lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre, said it was concerning that legal powers intended to aid serious criminal investigations were being deployed against people accessing welfare.

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