• the Police of the Czech Republic for the purposes of initiating a search for a specific
wanted or missing person, for the identification of persons of unknown identity or the
identity of a corpse that has been discovered, for the prevention or detection of specific
terrorist threats or for the verification of a protected person, while complying with the
conditions set out in a special legal regulation,
• the Security Information Service, for the purposes of and under the conditions laid down
in a special legal regulation,
• the Military Intelligence service for the purposes of and under the conditions laid down in
a special legal regulation,
• the Czech National Bank for the purposes of and under the conditions laid down in a
special legal regulation.
Conditions for the access of law enforcement authorities to retained data are
formulated in § 88a of Code of Criminal Procedure. This provision specifies types of
criminal offences for which the retained traffic and location data could be requested
as follows (informal translation from ASPI system):
[. . .] an intentional criminal offence for which the law sets out a prison sentence with an
upper penalty limit of at least three years; for the criminal offence of violating the confidentiality of messages; for the criminal offence of fraud; for the criminal offence of unauthorised
access to computer systems and information media; for the criminal offence of procuring and
possessing access devices and computer system passwords and other such data; for the
criminal offence of dangerous threats; for the criminal offence of dangerous persecution; for
the criminal offence of spreading alarming news; for the criminal offence of encouraging a
criminal offence; for the criminal offence of approving a criminal offence; or for an
intentional criminal offence for which prosecution is stipulated in a proclaimed international
treaty binding on the Czech Republic.
The general requirement is that the prosecuted crime should be an intentional one
for which the law provides for imprisonment with an upper limit of the penalty of at
least 3 years. This, however, does not apply on the crimes that cannot be practically
prosecuted without the traffic and location data, i.e. crimes committed by means of
electronic communication. As the Explanatory Memorandum to the Act on electronic communications explains “should the police during the investigation of these
crimes had no chance to get traffic and location data, one could consider the
decriminalisation of such conduct, as these crimes would be virtually inexplicable”.
55 Finally, the data could also be requested for the purposes of criminal proceedings for an intentional crime, which the Czech Republic is required to prosecute
under an international treaty that is binding on the Czech Republic. The supra cited
provision also states that the order can be issued only in case there is no other way to
achieve the pursued purpose or if its achievement would be otherwise significantly
harder.
An application for a court order to request traffic data is prepared in preliminary
proceedings by a prosecutor and is usually based on a reasoned proposal from the
police. Before a prosecutor submits the application, she must assess whether the
order is necessary to obtain facts relevant to the criminal proceedings, whether there
is no other way to achieve the pursued purpose, whether the criminal proceedings are
55 See in Czech: Šámal (2013), pp. 1222–1237.
National Report: Czech Republic
147
wanted or missing person, for the identification of persons of unknown identity or the
identity of a corpse that has been discovered, for the prevention or detection of specific
terrorist threats or for the verification of a protected person, while complying with the
conditions set out in a special legal regulation,
• the Security Information Service, for the purposes of and under the conditions laid down
in a special legal regulation,
• the Military Intelligence service for the purposes of and under the conditions laid down in
a special legal regulation,
• the Czech National Bank for the purposes of and under the conditions laid down in a
special legal regulation.
Conditions for the access of law enforcement authorities to retained data are
formulated in § 88a of Code of Criminal Procedure. This provision specifies types of
criminal offences for which the retained traffic and location data could be requested
as follows (informal translation from ASPI system):
[. . .] an intentional criminal offence for which the law sets out a prison sentence with an
upper penalty limit of at least three years; for the criminal offence of violating the confidentiality of messages; for the criminal offence of fraud; for the criminal offence of unauthorised
access to computer systems and information media; for the criminal offence of procuring and
possessing access devices and computer system passwords and other such data; for the
criminal offence of dangerous threats; for the criminal offence of dangerous persecution; for
the criminal offence of spreading alarming news; for the criminal offence of encouraging a
criminal offence; for the criminal offence of approving a criminal offence; or for an
intentional criminal offence for which prosecution is stipulated in a proclaimed international
treaty binding on the Czech Republic.
The general requirement is that the prosecuted crime should be an intentional one
for which the law provides for imprisonment with an upper limit of the penalty of at
least 3 years. This, however, does not apply on the crimes that cannot be practically
prosecuted without the traffic and location data, i.e. crimes committed by means of
electronic communication. As the Explanatory Memorandum to the Act on electronic communications explains “should the police during the investigation of these
crimes had no chance to get traffic and location data, one could consider the
decriminalisation of such conduct, as these crimes would be virtually inexplicable”.
55 Finally, the data could also be requested for the purposes of criminal proceedings for an intentional crime, which the Czech Republic is required to prosecute
under an international treaty that is binding on the Czech Republic. The supra cited
provision also states that the order can be issued only in case there is no other way to
achieve the pursued purpose or if its achievement would be otherwise significantly
harder.
An application for a court order to request traffic data is prepared in preliminary
proceedings by a prosecutor and is usually based on a reasoned proposal from the
police. Before a prosecutor submits the application, she must assess whether the
order is necessary to obtain facts relevant to the criminal proceedings, whether there
is no other way to achieve the pursued purpose, whether the criminal proceedings are
55 See in Czech: Šámal (2013), pp. 1222–1237.
National Report: Czech Republic
147