New laws to help courts in other EU states order 'e-evidence' from here lack safeguards, says Oireachtas committee

Concerns raised by Matt Carthy include the lack of clarity on whether Ireland will be facilitating the prosecution of someone who had committed acts that wouldn’t be a criminal offence here, whether artificial intelligence (AI) will be used, and a lack of oversight for this new office in reviewing data prior to its transfer. File photo: SAM BOAL/Collins Photos

New Irish laws to transpose EU directives on cross-border “e-evidence” lack transparency, safeguards, and may come at a “very large and unquantifiable potential cost” to the State, it has been warned.

The EU’s regulation allows a judicial authority in one member state to order a service provider in another member state to produce electronic evidence it possesses for the purposes of a criminal investigation.