EU Executive Plans no New Data Retention Law

The EU home affairs commissioner said on Thursday, the European Commission will not introduce a new law requiring telecom companies to store the communications data of European Union citizens for security purposes. In April last year the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that an EU data retention directive requiring telecoms companies to store communications data for up to two years interfered with people's right to privacy by creating the impression that their private lives are the subject of constant surveillance. Dimitris Avramopoulos told a news conference in Brussels, “On the data retention directive, the European Commission does not plan to present a new legislative initiative."