EU: IP Addresses are personal data.

• Position: PRIVACY - Internet protocol - Brief article

The advocate general (AG) of the European Court of Justice (EJC) recently issued an opinion stating that dynamic Internet protocol (IP) addresses are personal data and are subject to the EU data protection directive. The AG's opinions are not legally binding but are often given great weight by the court.

In Patrick Breyer v. Federal Republic of Germany, the EJC was asked to interpret two provisions of the EU data protection directive:

1. Must the directive "be interpreted as meaning that an Internet Protocol address which a service provider stores when his website is accessed already constitutes personal data for the service provider if a third party (an access provider) has the additional knowledge required in order to identify the data subject?"

2. Does the directive "preclude a provision in national law under which a service provider may collect and use a user's personal data...