The Data Retention (EC Directive) Regulations 2009

[Ian Batten]

On 12 Feb 09, at 1435, Zoe O'Connell wrote:

> On 12/02/09 12:43, Joel Harrison wrote:
>> Under reg 10 of the new draft, and assuming that the SoS complies  
>> with
>> the law (i.e. the obligation under reg 10(2)), the Regulations will
>> apply to a public communications provider unless the relevant
>> communications data is retained in the UK by another public
>> communications provider.  The SoS still has the power to require
>> overlapping retention because, although reg 10(2) *requires* a notice
>> to be given under reg 10(1) where nobody else is retaining the data,
>> it does not *prevent* a notice from being given under reg 10(1) where
>> somebody else *is* retaining the data).
>
> Based on previous Home Office performance with RIPA, they're likely  
> to ignore everyone other than those who they regard as the really  
> big providers - BT Group, Virgin Media, CPW, Tiscali and a couple of  
> others

That's going to be an interesting question for JANET.  There's no  
central JANET mail infrastructure, so they can do no data retention  
worth talking about for that, and I think those pan-JANET web caches  
of yore have pretty much died a death, although I could be wrong.    
And yet not merely are some of our larger Universities equivalent in  
size to a mid-size ISP, but one their demographic is probably if  
anything more of interest to the security services (lots of non-UK  
citizens) than a typical ISP.  But doing business with every academic  
institution might be quite an entertainment...

ian