Here is something germane to this thread.
Date: Tue, 02 Feb 1999 19:42:43 -0500 From: "vinton g. cerf" <vcerf@MCI.NET> Subject: EC Directive on IP Addresses and Privacy X-Sender: vcerf@shoe.reston.mci.net To: "ISOC Members Discussion" <isoc-members-discuss@lyris.isoc.org> Reply-To: ISOC Members Discussion <isoc-members-discuss@lyris.isoc.org> List-Owner: <mailto:ISOC-members-discuss-owner@lyris.isoc.org> X-Message-To: [rmeyer@mhsc.com]
I thought this would interest you - these are NOT my words but the words of the source of the message to me:
"Yesterday, I learned from a very well-placed U.S. Government source that European law enforcement officials have told their American counterparts that they interpret the E.C. Data Protection Directive as prohibiting Internet service providers from maintaining records of users' IP addresses unless necessary for service or billing. This position indicates that E.C. officials consider both dynamic and static IP addresses to be subject to the Directive as "personal data'...relating to an...identifiable natural person" under Article 2(a) of the Directive. Therefore, it is being interpreted that the European Directive prohibits the retention of dynamic IP addresses even by an ISP unless it is used for billing purposes (which is rarely the case).
If shared by others in the E.C., the position could have significant implications for Internet business models." =================================================================
See you at INET'99, San Jose, CA, June 22-25,1999 http://www.isoc.org/inet99/
___________________________________________________ Roeland M.J. Meyer - e-mail: mailto:rmeyer@mhsc.com Internet phone: hawk.lvrmr.mhsc.com Personal web pages: http://staff.mhsc.com/~rmeyer Company web-site: http://www.mhsc.com ___________________________________________________ KISS ... gotta love it!