I've excerpted out the Irish responses from the full EU Council of Ministers document, which can be found here with some explanatory background here. Apologies for the formatting, which I've taken from the originating web page.
|
COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION |
|
Question 1: Has your country at present any special legislation concerning traffic data retention or is data traffic retention covered by existing legislation? If not are you considering legislation concerning traffic data retention? |
Directions under the Postal and Telecommunications Services Act 1983 were made by the Minister for Public Enterprise in April 2002 which require licensed operators to retain existing traffic data and future traffic data for not less than 3 years after the date of their generation.
Primary legislation is also being prepared which will require licensed operators to retain information concerning the use made of telecommunications services provided by them.
|
Questionnaire 2: Has your country yet focussed on a specific period of time for the retention of traffic data? Have you also considered what kind of traffic data should be retained? |
| |||
|
Country |
Answer |
| ||
|
|
Ireland |
The Direction (referred to in Answer 1) requires licensed operators to retain existing traffic data and future traffic data for not less than 3 years after the date of their generation. The proposed primary legislation (referred to in Answer 1) will require licensed operators to retain information concerning the use made of telecommunications services provided by them for any person for a period of 3 years after such use. It is expected that traffic data in the primary legislation will be defined in same manner as it has been in the Directions. Traffic data will mean any data processed by the licensed operator in connection with transmitting or receiving a telecommunication message on a telecommunications network or charging for it and includes, in relation to any message, data concerning (a) its routing, duration or time, (b) the location of the sender's or recipient's terminal equipment, (c) the network on which the message originates or terminates, and (d) the beginning, end or duration of its connection to the network. | ||
|
Questionnaire 3: Has your country considered allowing traffic data retention for purposes other than billing, such as network security purposes? |
The proposed primary legislation on the retention of traffic data will provide for compliance with any request from the police (Garda Síochána) or the Defence Forces for disclosure of data, in the interests of the prevention and investigation of serious crime, in the interests of national security and in the discharge by Ireland of its international obligations relating to terrorism.
|
Questionnaire 4: What is the present procedure for a law enforcement authority to obtain traffic data from a service provider? Has this procedure proven to be efficient and effective? |
There is a provision in law for the disclosure to the police (Garda Síochána) and the Defence Forces by licensed operators providing telecommunications services of information concerning the use made by any person of those services (the Postal and Telecommunications Act 1983, as amended by the Interception of Postal Packets and Telecommunication Messages (Regulations) Act 1993). This provision requires that such a request should be submitted in writing by a chief superintendent of the police (Garda Síochána) or a colonel of the Defence Forces.
Yes.
legal instruments concerning traffic data retenti
|
Questionnaire 5: Have you received any reports from your law enforcement authorities that have indicated an obstruction of their work due to the non-existence of appropriate legal instruments concerning traffic data retention? |
No.
|
Questionnaire 6: Have you entered into a permanent dialogue with your telecommunications industry about the issue of traffic data retention and what are the tendencies you have observed? How would you judge the general willingness of the telecommunications industry operating in your country to embark on a retention of traffic data? |
No - The telecommunications industry operators have, to date, facilitated the obtaining of call-related data for the purposes of the investigation of serious crime or national security and we do not foresee problems arising with the industry in relation to the primary legislation referred to at 1 above.
|
Questionnaire 7: How would you rate the solution of creating an instrument on traffic data retention for law enforcement purposes at a European level? |
We would favour the amendment of the Data Protection Directive in the telecommunications sector to ensure that law enforcement access to call related data is in accordance with national legislation.
Copyright 2003 Karlin Lillington
Theme Design by Bryan Bell
![Subscribe to "[ t e c h n o \ c u l t u r e ]" in Radio UserLand.](http://radio.weblogs.com/0103966/images/xmlCoffeeCup.gif){kind=small}
