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EU Data Retention Directive found to violate privacy rights
2013-12-12 13:06:00| Telecompaper Headlines
(Telecompaper) The EU's Data Retention Directive, which requires telecom operators to save customer communications data for eventual law enforcement purposes, violates citizens' privacy rights, according to an opinion from EU Court of Justice's Advocate General, Pedro Cruz Villalon. The directive passed in 2006 "constitutes a serious interference with the fundamental right of citizens to privacy", as provided for in the EU's Charter of Fundamental Rights, he said. The opinion was requested by national courts in cases brought by Digital Rights Ireland and a number of claimants in Austria's Constitutional Court against the directive. Passed as part of efforts to combat terrorism, the Data Retention Directive requires telecom service providers to collect and retain for up to two years traffic and location data on customer communications so that the data may be used in eventual criminal investigations. While the Advocate General was not opposed to the objectives of the directive, he found that it is too loosely defined, as it does not detail in what circumstances the data may be accessed or how it is to be retained. The latter are key requirements for any law that may violate fundamental rights. These details were left to the individual member states to define. The Advocate General suggested the directive could be suspended until further legislation is passed to remedy its shortcomings. His opinion is not binding on the EU Court; it must still make a final ruling in the cases.
Tags: rights
privacy
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Category:Telecommunications