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What it is

Phone companies must keep data on your communications

BOE step 7 of 7 · Passed

It is a government bill. Introduced by the Government. It was introduced on 9 March 2007. Introduced by: Gobierno.

Official title: Government bill on the retention of data relating to Electronic Communications and Public Communications Networks.

Follow this law

Source: Congreso de los Diputados, file 121/000128· updated 11 Nov

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

  1. Landline, mobile and Internet providers must keep data on who calls whom, when, for how long and with what device. They may never store what is said in the communication.
  2. The obligation applies to companies that provide electronic communications services to the public or operate public communications networks in Spain.
  3. Data is kept for twelve months from the date of the communication. By regulation, the period can be cut to six months or extended up to two years.
  4. Data is only handed over to certain authorized agents (judicial police, Customs Surveillance and the National Intelligence Center) and always with prior judicial authorization. If the judge sets no other deadline, delivery must happen within 72 hours.
  5. Companies must protect the data against misuse, and the Spanish Data Protection Agency oversees compliance. In addition, the person is not told that their data was handed over and cannot request its deletion.
  6. Anyone buying a prepaid SIM card must show ID, and the provider records their details in a register. Cards bought before the law have two years to be registered or will be canceled.

Who it affects

  • Landline, mobile and Internet providers: Must keep communications data, protect it and hand it over when a judge orders it.
  • Judicial police, Customs Surveillance officials and National Intelligence Center staff: May request the stored data to investigate crimes, always with judicial authorization.
  • Prepaid card customers: Must show ID when buying a prepaid card, and their details are recorded.
  • Spanish Data Protection Agency: Oversees that companies comply with the data protection rules.

Words worth knowing

Abonado o usuario registrado
The person who contracts or is assigned a phone or Internet service in their name.
Llamada infructuosa
A call that connects but gets no answer, or where the operator intervenes. Its data is also kept.
IMSI e IMEI
Codes that identify, respectively, the mobile customer and the phone itself.
Agente facultado
A person legally authorized to receive this data: judicial police, Customs Surveillance or the National Intelligence Center.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries

Where it stands

How far did it get?

It took 7 of 7 steps. It reached BOE, and today it is passed.

  1. Introduced9 March 2007Someone registers the text in the Congreso.
  2. Admitted13 March 2007The Bureau of the Congreso accepts it and, for a members’ bill, the plenary decides whether to consider it.
  3. Amendments16 March 2007Groups propose changes.
  4. Committee27 April 2007A committee goes through the text in detail.
  5. Plenary30 May 2007All 350 deputies vote.
  6. Senate21 June 2007The Senate can pass it, amend it or veto it.
  7. BOE4 October 2007It is published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) and comes into force.
See the 11 official steps on a timeline
Mar 2007Apr 2007May 2007Jun 2007Jul 2007Aug 2007Sept 200711. 9 March 2007: Presentación22. 13 March 2007: Comisión de Justicia Publicación desde 13/03/2007 hasta 16/03/200733. 13 March 2007: Calificación44. 16 March 2007: Comisión de Justicia Enmiendas desde 16/03/2007 hasta 27/04/200755. 27 April 2007: Comisión de Justicia Informe desde 27/04/2007 hasta 09/05/200766. 9 May 2007: Comisión de Justicia Aprobación con competencia legislativa plena desde 09/05/2007 hasta 10/05/200777. 10 May 2007: Comisión de Justicia Dictamen desde 10/05/2007 hasta 30/05/200788. 30 May 2007: Pleno Aprobación desde 30/05/2007 hasta 21/06/200799. 21 June 2007: Senado desde 21/06/2007 hasta 27/09/20071010. 27 September 2007: Pleno Enmiendas o veto del Senado desde 27/09/2007 hasta 04/10/20071111. 4 October 2007: Concluido - (Aprobado con modificaciones) desde 04/10/2007 hasta 12/11/2007

Was there a plenary vote?

We have no plenary vote linked to this law in the Congreso’s data.

What happens next

What happens now?

It is law, or will be once published in the BOE. It comes into force on the date its own text sets.

The same initiative in the other chamber:

Published in the BOE: Ley 25/2007, of 18 October, on the retention of data relating to electronic communications and public communications networks.

Sources

Where does all this come from?

  • The data comes from the open files of the Congreso, the Senate and the BOE, unaltered.
  • Each deputy’s province is the one of their seat on the day of the vote.
  • We only say “passed” or “rejected” when the majority needed is certain; otherwise we say which side had more votes.

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