The European Commission held a public meeting on 14 March to discuss the implementation of the Data Retention Directive (Directive 2006/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council). The meeting’s objective was to identify problems in transposing the Directive into the national legislation of Member States, to seek solutions and formulate best practise.
The meeting was jointly organised by the Directorate-General for Justice, Freedom and Security, and by the Information Society and Media Directorate-General. It was attended by representatives from the national justice ministries, data protection supervisory authorities and industry associations, including the European Competitive Telecommunications Association (ECTA) and the European Telecommunications Network Operators' Association (ETNO).
Discussing the progress made in transposing the Directive, it was pointed out that just one Member State, Denmark had completed transposition and that few had even advanced with the preliminary versions, with transposition expected only in January 2008. Moreover, given that 18 Member States have requested a postponement in transposition of the measures related to the internet, only nine will fully transpose the Directive at this stage. The deadline given for transposition of the Directive is 15 September 2007, although this may be postponed until 15 March 2009 for measures connected to the internet.
The meeting also discussed the need to find a balance between improving the security of Europe’s citizens and the right of each citizen to the protection of personal data. Other topics on the table included extending the types of data to be retained, the periods of retention and the associated costs for operators and service providers, as well as cost reimbursement, data retention technology, storage and deletion of data.
The meeting concluded by accepting the suggestion of setting up a group of specialists in the Commission; this group will identify best practise and help ensure greater consistency in the transposition of the Directive to the legislation of Member States.
Consult:
- Directive 2006/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, of 15.03.2006 https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?contentId=984649
Related information on ANACOM's website:
- EU - European Union https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?categoryId=66653
- Electronic communications - regulatory framework https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?categoryId=60209
