The German government has agreed a bill to require internet service providers to store all IP addresses for a period of three months in an effort to crack down on online crime.
The legislative amendment, drafted by the Justice Ministry, was passed by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Cabinet on Wednesday and requires parliamentary approval before it comes into force.
The measure is intended to make it easier to identify criminals and terror suspects online, with a particular focus on tackling fraudsters and offenders who distribute recordings of child sexual abuse.
Law enforcement agencies will only be permitted to access the stored IP addresses retrospectively if there is a suspicion of a specific criminal offence.
“Many European countries have had this type of regulation for a long time – it is time for us to follow suit,” said Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig, warning that digital space must not be a “haven for criminals.”
The bill comes almost 20 years after the first legislative effort to require telecommunications providers to store traffic and location data, which was later overturned by the Federal Constitutional Court in 2010.
Another law passed in 2015 was paused by a separate court two years later.
Hubig stressed that “fundamental rights are safeguarded” under the new bill, but that law enforcement would be strengthened by the measure.
However, the opposition Greens said that the blanket data retention requirement in the bill could also face issues in the courts if it violates data protection laws.
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