22 Human Rights in Counter-Terrorism Investigations against citizens.29 If they fail to exercise that duty without good cause, they can be held responsible for any breach of human rights that ensue. In the same vein, law enforcement agencies have a duty to take steps to prevent harm coming to those who provide information, as established by OSCE commitments and international human rights law. This duty applies also to information on terrorism-related acts. Whatever the gathering method, in some circumstances, especially when handling human sources of information, the source may need to be treated in confidence or in a sensitive manner. It is here that the first human rights concerns arise. Most law enforcement personnel who deal with the receipt of information from third parties are aware of the practical necessity of maintaining the confidentiality of their sources. Quite simply, if the source expects that their identity will be kept secret and the expectation is not met, then they are extremely unlikely to provide more information in the future. It is not just this practical aspect, however, that needs to be considered; the human rights of the source are also an important consideration, among them the right to life and the respect for private and family life. Reprisals of any kind – be they physical attacks, threats or the spreading of rumours and incitements to ostracize within a community – against those who provide information to law enforcement agencies are real possibilities. It is essential that adequate security measures, such as restricted access to databases and the use of codenames or numbers, are put in place to protect the identity of the sources. This is especially so with respect to counter-terrorism databases, where the consequences of information being leaked will often be more serious than might be the case with other criminal intelligence databases. Action that would lead to the inadvertent identification of the source should also be avoided as far as possible. Whether the state will have breached this duty in a particular case depends on the circumstances and on such factors as the nature of the information supplied, the potential consequences for the terrorism suspects of law enforcement agencies becoming aware of it, and the subsequent foreseeable risk to the informant. Where the risk is high due to the proximity of the 29 See for example, ECtHR, Osman v. UK, Application No. 87/1997/871/1083, 28 October 1998, <http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/sites/eng/pages/search.aspx?i=001–58257>.