December 16, 2002 -- (WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) -- ISPs in the UK said this week that the cost of storing all the data demanded required by the government's Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act (ACTS) will far exceed the £20 million estimated by the government.
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AOL director of public policy Camille de Stempel said at the All Party Parlimentary Group (APIG) public inquiry last week that just setting up systems for AOL would cost about £30 million, with a similar cost again to operate the system.
Many ISPs retain some communications data, including the IP addresses of Web sites visited and the addresses of emails, for a variety of purposes. While this information does not include content, many still consider it to be invasive.
While the government has not yet demonstrated how it would reimburse ISPs for the cost of retaining data, it is said to be considering a subsidy of approximately £20 million per year for the entire industry. ISPs say this figure would be inadequate.
Beyond just the cost of retaining data, ISPs would also face problems when a request was made for data by law enforcement. The Regulation of Investigatory Powers act, say ISPs, determines that requests for communications data must be proportional, which would require the ISP to search for a particular piece of data.
