EU court adviser backs data retention with strict rules

Denials all round: The EU insists it is not practising "digital protectionism" and that the bloc is open to all tech players.

Telecoms operators in the European Union may be required to retain customer communications data as long as it is strictly necessary to fight serious crime and does not unduly interfere with privacy, an adviser to the top EU court said. 

The types of data that can be retained include the date, time and duration of calls, and the source and destination of calls, but not their content, an advocate general to the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) said.