Anti-Terror Law Allows Australian Government to Monitor Entire Internet

Journalists, bloggers and whistleblowers in Australia could face up to 10 years in prison under new terror laws, which will allow law enforcement agents to monitor the entire internet with just one warrant.

Anyone accused of "recklessly" disclosing information relating to a special intelligence operation will be charged under the new National Security Legislation Amendment Bill that passed the Senate on Thursday with bipartisan support.

Revealing the identity of an agent from the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) will be met with a prison sentence of up to a decade, a ten-fold increase on previous penalties.

"This bill mandates an extraordinary expansion to how the law henceforth will understand to be the definition of a computer and expand it to include the definition of a network or networks," said Scott Ludlam, an internet freedom activist and Senator for Western Australia.

"This deliberate expansive definition of computer means effectively with one single warrant ASIO could spy on any device connected to the internet anywhere in the world.

"I find it remarkable that under the weight of this evidence the Labour Party considers that that's OK."

The bill still needs to be passed through the House of Representatives on Tuesday, however this process is usually just a formality.

Concerns about the bill were also raised by Liberal Democrat Senator David Leyonhjelm.

"There does need to be a level of constraint on the scope of warrants issued under this section," he said. "It just can't be allowed to stand. It's a license to snoop on anyone, any time, anywhere."