New laws targeting encrypted communication networks and organised crime profits will make a difference, the government says, but NSW Police will never win the war against organised crime.
"We've won some battles, but the war will never be over, especially in NSW, especially in Sydney," Deputy Police Commissioner David Hudson told reporters on Wednesday.
"We have the brightest light and we attract the biggest bugs," he said.
Police Minister Paul Toole says new laws moving through NSW parliament are based on what police have said they need and in some instances are world-leading.
"We're powering ahead with some of the toughest laws that are dealing with organised crime," he said.
Targeting gangs and criminal networks has become even more of a political necessity in Sydney.
Multiple murders have rocked the city, in CBD alleyways under the cover of darkness and on suburban streets in broad daylight over the past two years.
Sydney's drug market and the huge profits involved means the risky job of distributing illicit substances has led to battles over territory and clients.
Police say other disputes dating back years involve personal or family conflicts.
On the table to address the issue are new laws targeting unexplained wealth and the use of dedicated encrypted communication devices.
More than $250,000 cash or $2 million in assets could trigger police suspicions and lead to the owner having to prove they were not the result of crime.
It's not just the stereotypical criminal that could be caught in the net.
Lawyers and accountants who facilitate money laundering or provide other help to criminals could find themselves targeted too.
"There are people that have facilitated serious organised criminal activity ... there are specific offences created for individuals with fiduciary responsibilities," Mr Hudson said.
The law targeting devices used by criminal networks will not necessarily help police crack the encryption codes, but could prevent or reduce their usefulness in organising drug trades, money laundering and murders.
The law will also allow police to apply for powers to search a person, their property or vehicle to see if they have one of the devices.
The targeted person has to have been convicted of a serious criminal offence, including money laundering, or drug and firearm offences among others.
Existing serious crime prevention and firearm prohibition orders are already used, while a drug supply prohibition order began a trial in four locations around NSW earlier this year.
"They're not enough," Mr Toole said.
The new orders won't be different but will broaden the ability of police to use them.
"They'll work in the same way as those previous orders ... but will also now be (used) for encrypted devices."
Police have described the use of prohibition orders as "lawful harassment", allowing them to stop and search people subject to them without specific warrants.
Labor is not opposing the new laws but its police spokesman Paul Scully told parliament on Tuesday laws have not kept up with technology.
"Like many other things in modern society, organised crime ... is being organised and co-ordinated over digital platforms," he said.
The party is assured the law will not cover personal use of encrypted apps on an ordinary smartphone, and the dedicated devices targeted are used by "a very well defined and very small group of people," Mr Scully said.
