European Data Retention Directive passed

By Steve Malone

Posted on 15 Dec 2005 at 10:53

The European Parliament has finally approved the Data Retention directive. The new directive states that telcos and ISPs should store all electronic communications including location data on calls, SMS and Internet use calls for a total of 24 months.

The MEPs also voted to include the retention of unsuccessful calls.

The hard fought directive is the result of a compromise between the two biggest blocs in the Parliament - the centre-right European Peoples Party and the centre-left Party of European Socialists (PEP) - ignoring many of the recommendations of the Parliament's own civil liberties committee.

The Directive is intended to help law enforcement agencies across the European Union monitor and detect the activities of criminals and terrorists. Spain and the UK, which currently holds the Presidency of the EU, have strongly supported the Directive following the terrorist attacks in Madrid and London.

The Parliament says that the directive covers traffic and location data generated by telephony, SMS and Internet, but not the content of the information communicated. The MEPs decided that the data should be retained and used for 'specified forms' of serious criminal offences such as terrorism and organised crime.

The Parliament decided against the use of the data simply for 'prevention' as this was felt to be too vague and could lead to abuse by national authorities.

As a further check, each national government is committed to establish an independent authority responsible for monitoring the use of the data.

Telecommunications companies will be instructed to hold the data for a minimum of six months and a maximum of 24. Those who do not are subject to 'effective, proportionate and dissuasive' sanctions.

Many ISPs are particularly unhappy about the retention of failed calls, as they do not currently keep records of them for billing purposes. They are likely to be even more unhappy at the deletion of the clause making it mandatory for Member States to reimburse telecom companies for all additional costs of retention, storage and transmission of data that is likely to cost them hundreds of millions of Euros.

The Parliament voted by 378 to 197 against, with 30 abstentions. Those against mostly consisted of the greens and the left wing GUE.