Corrections Act 2004

Corrections system - Monitoring, collecting, using, and disclosing prisoner communications and information sources for intelligence purpose - Warnings

127Q: Warnings

You could also call this:

"Prison staff must warn you that your phone calls, visits, and mail may be listened to or read."

When you are a prisoner, the chief executive of the prison must tell you that your communications and information may be monitored, collected, used, and shared. You will be informed of this when you arrive at the prison or soon after. The chief executive must also make sure there are clear notices in the prison warning you about this.

The chief executive has to make sure you hear a message at the start of every phone call you make from the prison, telling you that the call may be monitored or recorded. When you have visitors, there must be notices in the visiting area warning you and your visitors that your visits may be monitored and that your conversations may be recorded.

The chief executive must also inform you and your visitor if your visits are being monitored and if information is being collected from them. You will be told that this information may be used and shared under this law. There must also be clear notices in the prison warning you that your mail may be monitored, collected, used, and shared.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

This page was last updated on 29 June 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS996608.

Topics:

Crime and justice > Criminal lawCrime and justice > Victim supportGovernment and voting > Government departments

127P: Employee must not knowingly disclose prisoner communications and information sources, or

"Staff must keep prisoner information secret, except in special cases allowed by law."

127R: Disposal of record held by department delayed pending resolution of complaint, or

"The department must keep your record until a complaint about it is sorted out."

Part 2Corrections system
Monitoring, collecting, using, and disclosing prisoner communications and information sources for intelligence purpose: Warnings

127QWarnings

The chief executive must take all practicable steps to ensure that when, or promptly after, prisoners are received in a prison, they are informed that prisoner communications and information sources may be monitored, collected, used, and disclosed under this subpart.
The chief executive must ensure that there are prominently placed in every prison written notices warning prisoners of the monitoring, collection, use, and disclosure of prisoner communications and information sources under this subpart.
The chief executive must ensure that at the start of every outward prisoner call that is being or is to be monitored or collected, the prisoner hears, or there is transmitted to the device to which the call is made, a message to the effect that the call may be monitored or collected.
The chief executive must ensure that there are prominently placed in visiting areas in every prison written notices—
warning prisoners and visitors that their visits may be monitored, and that communications in the visits may be monitored and collected; and
stating in general terms the purposes for which collected information may be monitored, used, and disclosed under this subpart.

The chief executive must ensure that a prisoner and their visitor are informed—
if the chief executive has approved the monitoring of, and the collection of information from, visits between the prisoner and their visitor; and
that the information collected may be monitored, used, and disclosed under this subpart.

The chief executive must ensure that there are prominently placed in every prison written notices warning prisoners of the monitoring, collecting, using, and disclosing of mail under this subpart.

Notes

Section 127Q: inserted, on 1 October 2024, by section 36 of the Corrections Amendment Act 2024 (2024 No 41).