NZ spy agency vows increased oversight after hosting foreign intelligence system

A New Zealand spy agency has accepted recommendations for increased oversight after an inquiry found it had hosted a foreign intelligence-collection system for years without telling the government.
The Inspector General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS), which oversees the country’s spy agencies, reported Thursday that the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) had hosted a signals intelligence system deployed by a foreign agency and took part in a programme related to that system.
The IGIS report said the bureau had agreed to host the system without gaining governmental approval or informing it, and that senior leadership lost track of the programme.
After the IGIS inquiry, the GCSB accepted the agency’s recommendations to compile a register of collection or analysis capabilities in New Zealand that are operated by foreign partners; audit its systems, including any foreign partner capabilities; review and monitor international agreements; and establish a process that allows IGIS to review any international agreements and arrangements entered into.