Certified Information Privacy Professional – Europe (CIPP/E) — Question 82

How is the retention of communications traffic data for law enforcement purposes addressed by European data protection law?

Answer options

• A. The ePrivacy Directive allows individual EU member states to engage in such data retention.
• B. The ePrivacy Directive harmonizes EU member states’ rules concerning such data retention.
• C. The Data Retention Directive’s annulment makes such data retention now permissible.
• D. The GDPR allows the retention of such data for the prevention, investigation, detection or prosecution of criminal offences only.

Correct answer: A

Explanation

The correct answer is A because the ePrivacy Directive specifically permits individual EU member states to implement their own data retention policies. Options B and C are incorrect as the ePrivacy Directive does not harmonize these rules and the annulment of the Data Retention Directive does not imply permissibility. Option D is also wrong since the GDPR has specific conditions under which data retention is allowed, but it does not override the provisions set by the ePrivacy Directive.