The recently passed law, Regulation of Investigatory Powers (RIP) Act is being fought against by the UK Internet civil liberties group Cyper Rights & Cyper Liberties. To help them with their project they have teamed up with US e-mail encryption company Hush Communications.

Together their 'Cyber-Rights.Net' will be working at bypassing the regulations that this Act has enforced within the UK and at the same time draw attention to what they feel is international moves towards developing an internet surveillance.

The RIP Act that commenced on the 5 October 2000 allows law enforcement officers increased powers to access e-mail communications and to decrypt encrypted messages. While the government claim that this new Act will allow increased surveillance over the internet, privacy groups state that this gives the police too much power and could be open to abuse.

Hush communications intend to set up and run a new website called 'cyber-rights' that will allow the UK internet user access to e-mail privacy. This will be possible by allowing UK internet users access to servers outside of Britain.

The UK is not alone when it comes to monitor the use of the Internet, the FBI already watch e-mail users and Russia and the Netherlands also have laws similar to that of RIP.

The introduction of the RIP Act has however led to the debate as to whether this does in fact contravene a citizen's right to privacy under the UK's new Human Rights Act.