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Coded communication is nothing new between criminals, and weakening the security/privacy of Australian software is not going to solve this problem. Weakening encryption of Australian software is not going to work against organized crime; These organizations are quick to adapt to changing law enforcement techniques. It is, however, going to make it much easier to surveil the general populace.

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There will always be some criminals who are sophisticated enough to evade surveillance (until they make a mistake) - but that doesn't mean it's useless as many violent and/or organised criminals do get caught. Many get caught even with old-fashioned phone taps.

Also, aren't there ways of implementing targeted surveillance without weakening privacy/security very much, if at all? For example, targeting a specific user/device and making sure all exfiltrated data is encrypted with a public key belonging to the police.

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