The Australian Federal Police are looking to buy new phone-hacking technology allowing them to copy data from phones or monitor calls and texts after returning the device to the owner.

Last week, the AFP opened a tender for mobile phone forensic hardware allowing them to access "legally seized mobile telephones" and review the data in "a forensically sound manner".

The AFP already uses phone-hacking technology produced by private Israeli company Cellebrite.

The hardware would have to be portable with the "desirable" capability to bypass passwords users have on their phones.

"Since 2009 mobile phone data retrieving units have been purchased and distributed across the AFP nationally to fulfil the requirements for investigators to logically acquire and review the contents of legally seized mobile telephones," the tender read.