Metadata Retention

Status Systemic

Two years of every Australian's communications records, retained by law and accessed without a warrant hundreds of thousands of times a year under s178 authorisations.

Last on record: 2026-09-24
Named in: 3 articles
Across: 2 cases

Named in 3 articles across 2 cases 14 connections: companies 2, mechanisms 1, regulators and bodies 2, agencies and departments 5, police 2, people 2

Key figure on file

126,775 of 357,864

NSW Police's share of the nation's warrantless s178 metadata authorisations in 2024-25. The same force made 43 of the 58 voluntary TOLA assistance re… TIA Act Annual Report 2024-25; SDA Annual Report 2024-25, homeaffairs.gov.au

Articles naming it

Cases it recurs across

Linked in the graph

Figures on file

Fig. 01 / Where this name appears

The Surveillance Rort126,775 of 357,864NSW Police's share of the nation's warrantless s178 metadata authorisations in 2024-25. The same force made 43 of the 58 voluntary TOLA assistance …2 articles →The Reporting Rort11 article →

Fig. 01Source: article scan · every article naming itAs of 2026‑09‑24Auto-assembled

Fig. 02 / On the record

126,775 of 357,864NSW Police's share of the nation's warrantless s178 metadata authorisations in 2024-25. The same force made 43 of the 58 voluntary TOLA assistance requests, the clear majority of the national total.Source: TIA Act Annual Report 2024-25; SDA Annual Report 2024-25, homeaffairs.gov.auThe order that replaces the warrant →
357,864Warrantless metadata authorisations were made under s178 of the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act in 2024-25, to enforce the criminal law. No warrant is required for a s178 authorisation; warrantless is the exact word. That is about 1,000 a day.Source: TIA Act Annual Report 2024-25The sunset that won't set →

Fig. 02Source: figures on file for this name, each tied to the article it came fromAs of 2026‑09‑24Auto-assembled

Fig. 03 / Named together

The 12 names most often in the same articles as Metadata Retention. A line's weight, and the number by each name, is how many articles name both. Grey chords join the neighbours most often named together themselves (two articles or more). Circles are people and organisations, squares are mechanisms. Named together is all this shows: it is not a finding about what the relationship is.

Fig. 03Source: article scan · articles naming bothAs of 2026‑09‑24Auto-assembled