Intelligence agencies often cannot afford to wait for courtroom-level proof before acting—especially in terrorism, where prevention demands intervention before an attack occurs. But in terms of protecting sovereignty and security, and signalling to Tehran, waiting for a courtroom verdict would be reckless. That contrast is clear when set against the Australian Federal Police’s recent use of criminal law to arrest and charge an individual with foreign interference. The higher bar is proper: the criminal law carries the gravest consequences, including deprivation of liberty. The criminal law bar protects liberty.