site.btaInterior Minister Radev Expects New Surveillance Software to Contribute to Security

Brussels, July 10 (BTA Correspondent Nikolay Jeliazkov) - Interior Minister Valentin Radev voiced here on Monday his Ministry's expectations that it will counter terrorism better with the newly acquired surveillance software for work with electronic devices. Radev commented the topic before Bulgarian journalists in the European Parliament.

Monday media report that spyware capable of cracking the most popular mobile applications like Viber, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Skype, etc., has been procured for the Chief Directorate for Combating Organized Crime. The procurement does not specify whether the new software will be used to retrieve information from mobile devices seized as physical evidence or to gather information through remote access (in the latter case the Directorate will definitely need authorization for deployment of special surveillance means which, by law, is granted by the court). The tender was announced at the beginning of the year and was completed about ten days ago with a single bidder. Nearly 18,000 leva before VAT were paid for the product, Oxygen Forensic Analyst. The money came from the Norwegian Financial Mechanism under a project entitled "Joint efforts to fight trans-border organized crime".

Minister Radev said that the contradictory media information about the software, which his Ministry will use to decode electronic devices, are the result of the low level of trust in institutions. "Nobody would have doubted the Chief Directorate for Combatting Organized Crime, which is where this software is, if there was more trust, and all of us along the chain are to blame for this," he said. "It would be better to buy more software, if we have the money for it, and monitor everything. If somebody has concerns about this, they should know that this is the price for security," Radev added.

The more legal surveillance conducted on citizens, the better, because this way the bad guys will be caught, who may include radical elements and future terrorists, Radev reasoned. "I hope and believe that this software will be used legally. Everyone should view it this way, instead of worry that it will be used for other purposes. This is a thing of the past and I hope it will not happen in the future," he said. "It is better to be more secure, even if we cross the line somewhere and use it not as intended. This would be better than missing some terrorists," the Minister argued.