British police have been granted authority to hack into personal computers without first obtaining a warrant.

However, officers must still seek the permission of a local chief constable before accessing a suspect's machine.

Remote searches can be executed by infecting a computer with stealth malware capable of relaying e-mail and browsing habits to a remote surveillance team. Detectives may also hijack wireless networks to access stored data on hard-drives or USB devices.

UK police reportedly carried out 194 hacking operations during 2007-08 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, including 133 in private homes, 37 in offices and 24 in hotel rooms. MI5 and GCHQ currently monitor the Internet via a network of black boxes attached to servers, but are studying ways of expanding the already invasive system.

Law enforcement officials claim the new snooping policy is a critical component in their fight against cyber-crime. However, shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve expressed concern over the "exercise of such intrusive powers" and demanded the government explain what safeguards, if any, would be established.

Shami Chakrabarti, director of the human rights campaign group Liberty, believes the practice is no different "from breaking down someone's door, rifling through their paperwork and seizing their computer hard drive".

A Home Office spokesman addressed the above-mentioned concerns by telling the Telegraph that the UK had "agreed to a strategic approach towards tackling cyber crime on the same basis as all member states." The spokesman added that Britian fully supported efforts to develop an understanding of the impact of electronic crime across the UK and would work with states to clarify details of the proposal.

It should be noted that the British political echelon has faced serious criticism over plans for a "big brother" database slated to contain information regarding phone calls, email and Internet visits made by UK residents. British citizens will also receive biometric identity cards by the end of 2009, effectively creating the world's largest identity register. X

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