Gardaí may be given new powers to force people to give up their passwords if their home is subject to a search warrant.
It’s part of a number of reforms being proposed by the Justice Minister.
These new laws would mean gardaí - who have a search warrant for someone’s home – could make the person hand over their passwords to their phone or computer.
The proposed new legislation has been announced by Justice Minister Heather Humphreys.
It would cut out a lot of time and effort in searching the devices, but only if the person hands the password over.
The new laws would also mean suspects of human trafficking would have their time in custody extended from 24 hours to a week.
The Department of Justice says it’s warranted because of the control that is often exerted by perpetrators on their victims.
Other reforms include abandoning the requirement for gardaí to take written notes in interviews, introducing a single power of arrest and making gardaí have a written record for why they stopped and searched someone.
