Only in a topsy-turvy world would it be seen as rational to bring a posse of spies to heel by increasing their rights to snoop without a warrant, writes Brian Rudman.

A European Parliament bid for legislation splitting up Google may send a message that's too loud to ignore.

Gehan Gunasekara writes: Privacy rules are inevitably cited as an excuse when bureaucratic bungling occurs in relation to managing people and information.

It’s one of the biggest houses in the country, but the walls are closing in on Kim Dotcom as he rattles around his mansion.

The term "secretary" comes from the Latin for secret. Back in the day, a secretarius was someone who worked for someone of great importance, like a king, and was in charge of confidential information.

WhatsApp, the world's most popular instant messaging platform, has begun encrypting all its data by default.

The Waldorf Astoria sale to a Chinese buyer is likely to spark a national security review to assess potential spying risks.

The first ever academic study of state snooping in New Zealand is among 101 research projects to win grants in this year's Marsden Fund round.

Senior British tabloid editors are shown naked, embarrassed and scuttling for cover in a new documentary targeting them with the kind of treatment usually dished out by their own newspapers.

The chief executive of Apple has spoken of his pride in being gay, calling it "among the greatest gifts God has given me".

A real estate agent censured for rifling through a client's lingerie drawer at an open home has complained to the Human Rights Review Tribunal that his privacy has been breached.

I was intending to give Snowden and the topic of mass state surveillance a rest, as it is starting to feel done to death already.

New documents released by NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden suggest NZ's embassies have been involved in spying on friendly nations on behalf of the United States.

The 10-hour raid on Nicky Hager's house this week gives us a tasty preview of how police could be roped into doing the bidding for higher powers, says Dita de Boni.

A New Plymouth bed and breakfast owner has been ordered to stop filming his neighbour and pay $7000 compensation by the Human Rights Tribunal.

Governments are ill-prepared to combat the looming threat of "online murder" as cyber criminals exploit internet technology to target victims, the European policing agency warned.

Google's efforts to stoke a European debate on Internet privacy may be overshadowed by a cameo appearance by Barbra Streisand.

Private information stored online by European computer users could be scrutinised by American law enforcement agencies.

Prime Minister John Key says his former adviser and National Party staffer Jason Ede was not forced out of his job in response to the Dirty Politics scandal.

Police are investigating after attempts were allegedly made to hack a nationwide patient database.

I don't need the fevered revelations of a couple of Americans, plus our resident German, to understand that my electronic communications might be subjected to privacy intrusions.

Labour leader David Cunliffe says he has sought reassurance from former Labour Prime Minister Helen Clark about the party's role in recent spying revelations.

John Key has struck directly at a specific detail in the spying claims, saying new laws passed last year had nothing to do with the alleged mass surveillance project.

The head of the Southern Cross Cable Network has disputed Prime Minister John Key's claim that a cable had been tapped into as part of a proposition to collect metadata.

Legal experts are uncertain whether Kim Dotcom's "Moment of Truth" event should be declared by the Internet Party as an election expense.

The PM has been accused of withholding critical information on proposed mass surveillance from the public ahead of new spying legislation going through Parliament.