Terrorism: special investigation techniques

The beginning of the twenty-first century has been blighted by a resurgence of terrorist attacks on a scale previously unimaginable. The rapid technological advances at the end of the twentieth century have improved our quality of life but sadly these can also be used to the advantage of criminal and terrorist organisations. In order to combat terrorism and serious crime, law enforcement authorities have had to adapt their investigative means and develop special investigation techniques. These techniques are used to systematically gather information in such a way that they do not alert the person(s) investigated, for the purposes of detecting and investigating crimes and suspects. Since there is a risk that they may infringe individual rights, special investigation techniques must be subject to control. This has been advocated by the European Court of Human Rights which "has already recognised the need, inherent in the Convention System, for a proper balance between the defence of the institutions of democracy in the common interest and the protection of individual rights". This publication contains a survey of national practice in thirty-five Council of Europe member states as well as in Canada and the United States of America. It also includes an analytical report, which examines special investigation techniques in relation to law enforcement and prosecution, the control of their implementation, human rights and international co-operation in this field.