Bar Association Advocate Demands Investigation into Security Police Email Scanning

Kristjan Tuul, a bar association advocate at the law firm Namm, submitted a request to the Ministry of the Interior to initiate internal oversight of the Estonian Security Police (KAPO) regarding an alleged unlawful practice in which telecommunications and service providers were required to hand over the contents of individuals' email accounts without court authorization. However, the Ministry of the Interior concluded that this falls outside its jurisdiction and recommends turning to the prosecutor's office.

Bar association advocate Kristjan Tuul from the law firm Namm submitted an official request to the Ministry of the Interior on 8 June 2026 to initiate internal oversight of the Estonian Security Police (KAPO). The request was based on an allegation that KAPO has systematically required service providers to hand over the contents of individuals' email accounts without legal basis and without court authorization.

A Broader Question Emerged from Court Case

Tuul's request originated from a fraud case in which Toomas Tamm, Küllike Kangur and Kalev Kangur stood before the court. Both the circuit court and the court of first instance found all three defendants not guilty, and the Supreme Court left the judgment in essence unchanged. In this case, the security police had required Telia to produce the email account contents of the suspect Tamm from 2015 to 2018.

In this matter, the Supreme Court took a clear position: investigating authorities have no right to demand the contents of a suspect's email account from a service provider during criminal proceedings; this may only be done with court authorization.

"I inform you that on 08.06.2026 I submitted to the Ministry of the Interior a request to initiate internal oversight of the Estonian Security Police in connection with unlawful and systematic practice that emerged from final court rulings, in which telecommunications and service providers were required to produce the contents of individuals' email accounts without legal basis and without court authorization," Tuul wrote to ERR.

According to the bar association advocate, the matter is not limited to a single specific court case. He suspects that investigating authorities have applied similar practices over a longer period in other proceedings as well.

Ministry of the Interior Directs to Prosecutor's Office

Tarmo Olgo, head of the internal audit division of the Ministry of the Interior, told ERR that the ministry analysed the request thoroughly but concluded that internal oversight could not be conducted. "In short, the Ministry of the Interior is not the appropriate authority and the Minister of the Interior is not the appropriate person in whose jurisdiction it would be to conduct internal oversight to clarify the legality and scope of investigative measures taken in specific criminal proceedings," Olgo explained.

Olgo acknowledged, however, that the question raised is significant and concerns an important public interest. He explained why it still falls outside the Ministry of the Interior's jurisdiction: although the security police does fall under the Ministry of the Interior's purview, there is a special procedure established for controlling criminal investigative measures, which gives this authority to the prosecutor's office.

"The activity described in the request, the enquiry made by the Estonian Security Police to a service provider to obtain email account contents, is in its nature a criminal investigative measure. For controlling the legality of criminal investigative measures, however, a special procedure is established, which vests the authority to control these measures in the prosecutor's office," said Olgo.

The Ministry of the Interior recommends that Tuul turn to the national prosecutor's office, which has the authority to assess whether the described practice was systematic and what measures are necessary to prevent it in the future.