Australian Crime Commission
The Australian Crime Commission (ACC) is Australia’s national criminal intelligence agency.
We are a niche, complementary agency delivering specialist law enforcement capabilities. We work in partnership with other law enforcement agencies to develop a national understanding of serious and organised crime.
Our purpose is to unite the fight against nationally significant crime.
The Australian Crime Commission conservatively estimates that serious organised crime costs Australia between $10–15 billion every year. This cost comprises loss of business and taxation revenues, expenditure on law enforcement and regulatory efforts, and social and community impacts of crime. Raising public awareness of crime issues is an important step in minimising the impact serious and organised crime can have on the community.
What we do?
As Australia’s national criminal intelligence agency, we make a valuable contribution to law enforcement. Our primary objective is to support and complement the law enforcement community and broader government efforts to reduce the threat and impact of serious and organised crime.
Above all, we are a service agency, with the responsibility of providing law enforcement— and other government agencies, at all levels of government—with a unique and valuable understanding of serious and organised crime, including its activities, methodologies and emerging areas of influence.
We are focused on three priority areas of work:
- we provide high level strategic assessments, including specialist advice on national criminal intelligence priorities
- we deliver criminal intelligence products and national criminal intelligence and information systems, that are designed to complement and support operational efforts
- we are pivotal to national criminal investigations with our partner agencies.
Capabilities
Our work is also supported by unique and specialist capabilities including:
- high quality strategic products
- our national criminal data holdings
- use of coercive powers where traditional law enforcement methods are not successful
- a national legislative and organisational framework that facilitates collaboration on a range of operational outcomes including joint taskforces and operations with state and territory jurisdictions
- specialist skills in the areas of intelligence, analysis, informant management and technical expertise to name a few.
Coercive Powers
When approved by the ACC Board, the ACC can draw on coercive powers which enable it to obtain information that cannot be accessed through traditional policing methods.
Coercive powers are similar to those of a Royal Commission and amongst other things, allow an Examiner to:
- summons any witness to appear before an Examiner
- require that witness to give evidence of their knowledge of matters concerning the criminal activities involving themselves and others upon whom an investigation or intelligence operation is focused, and/or
- require the person to provide documents or other things to the Examiner.
Information derived from the ACC’s coercive powers is protected under the secrecy provisions of the ACC Act.
Criminal Data Holdings
We manage the Australian Criminal Intelligence Database (ACID) and the Australian Law Enforcement Intelligence Network (ALEIN).
ACID and ALEIN provide federal, state and territory law enforcement and other regulatory authorities with a framework to securely store, retrieve, analyse and share criminal information and intelligence on a national basis. ACID and ALEIN are accessible by law enforcement and government partner agencies who contribute content to these systems, making them a truly national repository of criminal information and intelligence.
Intelligence Products
We provide national criminal intelligence assessments which draw on combined intelligence holdings of Commonwealth, state and territory agencies. Our intelligence products are tailored to meet the different needs of each client.
The majority of ACC intelligence products provide decision makers with context in order to understand emerging threats. Other products are designed to satisfy immediate operational imperatives or focus on projected criminal activity out to a few months.
Collaboration on Criminal Investigations
Everything we do is either with or for a partner agency. Our national legislative and organisational framework facilitates collaboration on a range of operational outcomes including joint taskforces and operations with state and territory jurisdictions.
National Criminal Intelligence Fusion Capability
The ACC-led Fusion Capability is a national multi-agency initiative that encompasses the Government’s collaborative approach to combating organised crime.
Launched in July 2010, the Fusion Capability provides in-depth criminal intelligence and analysis, and boosts the capability of law enforcement agencies to identify high-risk cash flows, patterns of crime and the individuals, businesses and corporate structures that may be involved in criminal enterprises in Australia and overseas. This collaborative initiative involves the successful partnership of Commonwealth, state and territory agencies.
ACC Board Priorities
The ACC Board endorses the high level National Criminal Intelligence Priorities, based on the criminal threats and issues it considers to be a high priority.
One of our key performance indicators is that our targeted investigations and operations are aligned with ACC Board priorities.
The ACC Board provides strategic direction through the approval of ‘determinations’ and confirms whether these operations or investigations are deemed ‘special’, authorising the use of coercive powers.
Special operations focus on gathering intelligence around particular criminal activity so decisions are informed by the true extent, impact and threat of that criminal activity. They involve use of coercive powers as approved by the ACC Board. These operations can help determine if a special investigation is warranted.
Special investigations are designed to disrupt and deter criminal groups by collecting evidence and intelligence about criminal activity. Coercive powers may be used in combination with a range of other investigative tools, including telephone intercepts, surveillance and controlled operations.