A parliamentary committee has begun exploring RCMP’s use of spyware.

The House of Commons ethics and privacy committee called for a summer study after the RCMP revealed its use of tools that covertly obtain data from devices like phones and computers.

 A lawyer says the R-C-M-P’s use of spyware is like letting police put on an invisibility cloak and sit on your living room couch, or on your bedside table.

Privacy and technology expert David Fraser says a high level of scrutiny should be applied for police warrants to covertly obtain data from devices like phones and computers.

Witnesses appearing during the scheduled two days of hearings include Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino, current and former privacy commissioners, and RCMP officers who oversaw the use of spyware.

The House of Commons ethics and privacy committee will be diving deeper into the issue in response to concerns flagged by for privacy and civil liberties groups across the country.

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association is calling for a discussion of the legal safeguards needed around the use of this technology.