lawful interception
- noun
- Formal
:
intercepción legal
- During investigations, lawful interception is used to collect evidence from suspects' communications.
Examples
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The new regulations require telephone companies to enable lawful interception by security services.
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Banking systems must ensure that lawful interception can be performed in accordance with national laws.
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The government authorized lawful interception of communications.
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Many countries have regulations for lawful interceptions.
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The government authorized lawful interception of communications to ensure national security.
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During investigations, authorities can use lawful interception to gather vital evidence from suspects' phone calls.
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Telecom providers must comply with requests for lawful interception from law enforcement agencies.
Synonyms
17
5.6
A device or way to secretly listen to phone calls
3
6.6
Catching information as it moves through a computer or network, sometimes changing it
How Intrusive
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is compositionally built from 'lawful' (allowed by law) + 'interception' (the act of intercepting or capturing something en route), so a learner who knows both words can infer it means interception that is legally authorized—typically of communications. Although the term is used in a technical/legal context, its core meaning is directly derivable from the constituents and follows standard adjective + noun composition patterns.
Etymology
Lawful interception comes from the idea of interception meaning 'to catch' a message or call and lawful meaning 'allowed by law'. Imagine an officer catching a phone call with legal permission, so it means 'the legally allowed watching or recording of communications'.