“But lawmakers agreed to the bill late Wednesday as Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti insisted the bill would affect only “dozens of cases a year.””
French police can now secretly switch on a suspect’s camera, microphone and GPS, and the same powers cover laptops, cars and connected devices. The safeguards are a judge’s sign-off, a six-month cap and an exemption for doctors, journalists, lawyers, judges and MPs. Everyone else gets the minister’s promise of “dozens of cases a year.” Surveillance powers only ever start small.