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Article 95: Relationship with Directive 2002/58/EC

Praxikon tracks Article 95 (Relationship with Directive 2002/58/EC) under the GDPR, alongside the EU AI Act, citing the source for every statement.

Chapter XIIn force since 25-05-2018

Official text

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This Regulation shall not impose additional obligations on natural or legal persons in relation to processing in connection with the provision of publicly available electronic communications services in public communication networks in the Union in relation to matters for which they are subject to specific obligations with the same objective set out in Directive 2002/58/EC.

Source: EUR-Lex, Regulation (EU) 2016/679. Official text, reproduced without modification.

More case law, guidelines and fines

In addition to the overview at the bottom of this page: rulings, guidelines and fines that interpret or apply this article, newest first. Each item was checked against the official source.

Case law (8)

  • 13 November 2025 · C-654/23 · CJEUePrivacy Directive
    Inteligo Media

    Using an email address for a newsletter within the soft opt-in of the ePrivacy Directive does not also require a legal basis under Article 6 of the GDPR.

  • 30 April 2024 · C-470/21 · CJEUePrivacy Directive
    La Quadrature du Net II

    The Full Court also allows general retention of IP addresses for ordinary online offences, provided they are kept so separately that no precise conclusions about private life can be drawn.

  • 27 October 2022 · C-129/21 · CJEU
    Proximus

    Inclusion in public telephone directories requires consent within the meaning of the GDPR. A request to be removed from directories is an exercise of the right to erasure, and the directory provider must take reasonable steps to inform other providers and search engines.

  • 20 September 2022 · C-793/19, C-794/19 · CJEUePrivacy Directive
    SpaceNet and Telekom Deutschland

    Germany's general retention obligation for traffic and location data breaches EU law; the Court confirms the La Quadrature du Net line.

  • 2 March 2021 · C-746/18 · CJEUePrivacy Directive
    Prokuratuur

    Access to retained traffic and location data is only allowed for serious crime and after prior review by a court or independent body; a public prosecutor that also prosecutes is not such a body.

Show 3 more
  • 6 October 2020 · C-511/18, C-512/18, C-520/18 · CJEUePrivacy Directive
    La Quadrature du Net I

    General retention of traffic and location data remains prohibited, with limited exceptions such as a serious threat to national security. Article 23 GDPR precludes a general retention obligation for hosting providers.

  • 21 December 2016 · C-203/15, C-698/15 · CJEUePrivacy Directive
    Tele2 Sverige and Watson

    National laws under the ePrivacy Directive may not impose general and indiscriminate retention of traffic and location data either. Targeted retention for serious crime is allowed, with prior review of access.

  • 8 April 2014 · C-293/12, C-594/12 · CJEUePrivacy Directive
    Digital Rights Ireland

    The Data Retention Directive 2006/24 is invalid: general retention of everyone's traffic data, without distinction or safeguards, is a disproportionate interference with Articles 7 and 8 of the Charter.

Guidelines and decisions (2)

Line of case lawConsent and cookies

When is consent valid?

  1. Planet49 (2019)A pre-ticked box is not consent.
  2. Guidelines 05/2020 on consent under Regulation 2016/679 (2020)The EDPB: cookie walls and scrolling do not give valid consent.
  3. Orange Romania (2020)The controller must prove consent.
  4. Meta Platforms v Bundeskartellamt (2023)A dominant position does not rule out consent but weighs heavily.
  5. Opinion 08/2024 on Valid Consent in the Context of Consent or Pay Models Implemented by Large Online Platforms (2024)Pay or consent on large platforms is usually not a free choice.
  6. Inteligo Media (2025)Within the ePrivacy soft opt-in no separate GDPR basis is needed.
  7. Digital Omnibus: proposal amending the GDPR (2025)Proposal to move cookie rules into the GDPR.
Line of case lawRetention of telecom data

May states have everyone's traffic and location data retained?

  1. Digital Rights Ireland (2014)The Data Retention Directive is invalid.
  2. Tele2 Sverige and Watson (2016)National general retention obligations are prohibited too.
  3. La Quadrature du Net I (2020)Limited exceptions, including for national security.
  4. Prokuratuur (2021)Access only for serious crime and after independent review.
  5. SpaceNet and Telekom Deutschland (2022)The German retention law fails; the line stands.
  6. La Quadrature du Net II (2024)General retention of IP addresses is allowed with strict separation.

Checked on 1 October 2026

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