Mails, SMS & Co: Researchers in the EU should have easier access to data

Negotiators from the European Parliament and the governments of the EU countries reached a provisional political agreement on Tuesday evening on new rules for access to digital data, as announced by the Czech presidency of the EU Council. Consequently, only technical details and formal confirmation by the Council of Member States and the plenary of the European Parliament are still missing.

According to the EU Commission responsible for the text, the core of the new regulation is a so-called publication order. In the future, it should allow judicial authorities to request direct access to electronic evidence from a service provider through a decentralized IT system. They must then respond within ten days, or even within eight hours in an emergency. A so-called security warrant is also intended to prevent electronic evidence from being erased by service providers.

“The new rules on e-evidence are urgently needed so that our judiciary and law enforcement agencies can act effectively against terrorism, cybercrime and other serious crimes,” EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson said of the agreement. Currently, criminals on a borderless internet often remain anonymous, resulting in impunity.

According to EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders, the authorities of the EU member states sent more than 100,000 requests for e-evidence to the largest online service providers in the second half of 2020 alone. With the new production order, Member States would now have a reliable channel to get data quickly.

In order to improve cooperation between authorities and service providers, the Commission believes that all service providers should appoint special representatives to deal with requests for information. At the same time, the protection of fundamental rights and personal data must always be guaranteed. (sda/dpa)