The Royal Thai Police's information technology and communications office says there are international mechanisms in place for police to seek cooperation regarding technology crimes.
The police can now seek help from Interpol or the Group of Eight (G8), Pol Col Niwes Arphawasin, head of the office's working group on technology crime investigation and analysis, said.
He was responding to media reports about the Technology Crime Suppression Division's move to seek the cooperation of the creator of the Line instant messaging application to track chat histories of people who are suspected of committing crimes in Thailand.
With cooperation from Interpol and the G8, Thailand could seek help from more than 100 countries, including the US and Japan, said Pol Col Niwes, who serves as the contact person in Thailand for both Interpol and the G8.
Under this cooperation, however, authorities in the member countries tend to only seek help with locating suspects, he said.
Requesting confidential information would be unusual, he said. Exceptions are made only when courts of member states issue orders that lead to requests, Pol Col Niwes said, mentioning the US in particular.
Under normal circumstances, it would take several months or even a year for such requests to be processed, he said.
By working with Interpol and the G8, the concerned country would be notified via e-mail in less than one day as to what information it would have to secure to examine specific information.
He said the information could be secured until the request is processed.