EDPS | EU | [O]n net neutrality, traffic management and the protection of privacy and personal data (PDF)
From Focus and structure of the Opinion:
“The EDPS considers that a serious policy debate on net neutrality must address the confidentiality of communications as well as other privacy and data protection implications. This Opinion contributes to this ongoing EU debate. Its goal is threefold:
- It flags the relevance of privacy and data protection in the current discussions on net neutrality. More particularly, it highlights the need to respect the existing rules on confidentiality of communications. Only practices that respect such rules should be allowed.
- Net neutrality relates to relatively new - technological - possibilities and there is little experience on how the legal framework applies. This Opinion therefore provides guidance on how ISPs must apply and respect the data protection legal framework if they engage in filtering, blocking and inspecting network traffic. This should be helpful for ISPs and also for authorities in charge of enforcing the framework.
- Within the scope of data protection and privacy, this Opinion identifies areas which call for special attention and which may require action at EU level. This is particularly important in the light of the ongoing debate at EU level and the policy measures that may be launched by the Commission in this context.”
(Source: out-law.com)
