Regulators Comment On Proposed ePrivacy Law Reforms

Things move fast in the world of privacy and data protection. Recently, the collective group of EU data protection authorities, the Article 29 Working Party ("WP29"), has been particularly active. In addition to publishing guidelines and launching consultations regarding the General Data Protection Regulation ("GDPR"), WP29 also released its views on the proposed ePrivacy law reforms, which legislators are aiming to coincide with the commencement of the GDPR. We examine the views of WP29.

What is the ePrivacy Directive?

The ePrivacy Directive (2002/58/EC) (the "Directive"), currently implemented in Ireland through the 2011 ePrivacy Regulations, regulates a wide variety of uses of private information in the electronic communications sphere. The Directive is the origin of laws regarding the use of cookies and similar technologies, the collection and use of location data, and the sending of 'spam' and electronic direct marketing. The Directive also covers many