Spooks 'to share terror secrets'

MI5 will be among those sharing data in the project

The UK's latest move in the fight against terrorism is a secret project to bring together intelligence data from the UK's security agencies, say reports.

The project, called Scope, is intended to share information between nine government departments, MI5 and MI6 and cost millions of pounds, according to Computing magazine.

Technology suppliers have been given initial briefings on the project after signing a secrecy agreement, it said.

It is one of several schemes introduced by the government following the September 11 terror attacks in the US.

Anti-terror network

The Home Office is pushing forward with its plans to introduce a national ID card and it is currently consulting on legislation to increase snooping powers on the internet.

Work on a nationwide computer network designed to combat terrorist threats was halted indefinitely in February due to technical issues and internal squabbles over funding.

The project is being run by the Cabinet Office Intelligence and Security Secretariat. A spokesperson for the department would not comment on the scheme.

According to Computing, the next stage in the process will be in June when technology suppliers must send back completed questionnaires on how best to share information between departments.

Data sharing

The scheme could be creating yet more technological headaches for government, warned Simon Davies, head of the lobby group Privacy International.

"It sounds like a symptom of the tendency in government to centralise all data but it doesn't make much sense and could create more work than it solves," he told BBC News Online.

Government departments are already under an obligation to share relevant information with the security services but the Home Office is keen to increase the amount of data sharing going on.

"The government is introducing several high-profile, technology-based initiatives focused on sharing information and confirming identity, such as ID cards, biometric passports, and asylum seekers' smartcards," said News Editor of Computing Bryan Glick.

"What it doesn't have is a way to co-ordinate and analyse the information across new and existing systems to gain a coherent picture for the intelligence services."

The Scope project could be the solution but it could "also provide a means to access information about UK citizens in a way that existing government IT systems cannot deliver", Mr Glick warned.