Exactly why Australian politicians and some rent-a-quote merchants are up in arms over the government's loss of control over a WeChat account set up for Prime Minister Scott Morrison is hard to fathom.

A joint parliamentary committee has proposed that an amendment to the laws governing critical infrastructure be split up into two, in order to pass what it says are "urgent reforms".

The Independent National Security Legislation Monitor, Dr James Renwick, says in a 316-page review handed down on 30 June that, with a couple of exceptions, the encryption law, known as the Telecommunications and Other Legislation Amendment (Assistance and Access) Bill 2018, passed by Australia in December 2018, is necessary.

The Independent National Security Legislation Monitor, Dr James Renwick, is likely to have suggested some changes to the encryption law passed by the government in 2018, in his review which was handed down on Monday.

Information that Australian law enforcement authorities collate using the country's 2018 encryption laws will be freely available to their US counterparts under the provisions of a new law which is currently the subject of a parliamentary inquiry, a legal expert says.

A parliamentary panel, that is reviewing the mandatory data retention laws introduced in 2017, has been told that the legislation goes too far and should be scaled back.

The Australian Government wants to know what you look like when you are watching porn online so that it can use its face verification system to deny access to those below the legal age (which in this case is 16).

The Department of Home Affairs wants IP addresses, MAC addresses and port numbers to be added to the list of data retained by providers under the existing data retention regime, according to a submission made to a review of the law.

The Federal Government's encryption law has been referred to the Independent National Security Legislation Monitor, Dr James Renwick, for review and a report by 1 March next year, the first time the panel has referred any legislation to the INSLM.

The Federal Government's encryption law spreads its net far and wide in society, but exempts one class of person — politicians — from its tentacles, according to an analysis of the law by lawyer and consultant Matthew Shearing.

The same fate that befell big data analytics company Splunk last month — having to pull out of doing business in Russia — is likely to be shared by many Australian technology companies in the same or other countries once the Federal Government's encryption law begins to make its presence felt.

Melbourne-based secure email provider FastMail says it has begun to see existing customers leave and potential customers go to other providers, and the reason cited is the government's encryption bill.

The Federal Government's encryption bill, which is up for debate and passage in Parliament at the time of writing (11am AEDT), still represents a threat to the cyber security of all Australians and a major risk for the future of Australia's IT industry and the livelihoods of Australians who work in that industry, Communications Alliance chief John Stanton has said.

Following disagreement between the Federal Government and the Opposition over its passage, a hearing of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security inquiring into the encryption bill, scheduled for Tuesday, appears to have been cancelled.

The Government’s data retention legislation has passed through the House of Representatives, with only three members voting against it. It now heads for the Senate.

An uneasy compromise between the Government and the Opposition on protecting journalist’s sources may see the data retention Bill pass quickly.

The parliamentary committee examining the Government’s planned data retention legislation has submitted its report. It wants things spelt out better.

OPINION: Embattled Prime Minister Tony Abbott, his data retention plans under fire on all sides, is attempting to deflect the pressure onto the Opposition. Bill Shorten is not buying.

The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security has started another inquiry into the Government’s planned data retention bill.