The Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection plans on monitoring the implementation of the provisions of the Law on Personal Data Protection among electronic communications operators, especially the mobile telephony operators and internet providers.

Last summer, upon finishing the monitoring of implementation of the Law on Personal Data Protection among landline and mobile telephony operators in Serbia in relation to the access of security agencies and police force to the communication data, the Commissioner concluded that there are significant derrogations in the implementation practice of personal data protection measures as compared to the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia and other relevant international documents. In this regard, the Commissioner and the Ombudsman suggested a „14-Measure Package" that was supposed to be implemented by the Parliament and the Government of the Republic of Serbia in order to ensure the respect of constitutional rights.

One of the measures is related to the changes in relevant laws in order to define which courts in particular have jurisdiction to decide on requests for access to citizens' communications in order to conduct criminal proceedings or proceedings aimed at ensuring state security.

While expecting for the state authorities to undertake measures in order to ensure the respect of the right to privacy, communication privilege and personal data protection, the Commissioner is planning to conduct monitoring of operators in order to see how they process communication data, and, especially, how they handle leftover data and protect them.

Based on the claims by the Pirate Party of Serbia, the Commissioner will focus on particular cases of violation of Constitution and the Law. The Commissioner would like to remind the public that the access to communications, including access to leftover data about the communication itself, is granted by the court. Every individual who acts differently is at risk of being charged with a misdemeanour according to the Law on Personal Data Protection, but could also bear criminal responsibility for unauthorized tapping and recording, and unauthorized personal data processing.