On October 19, 2016, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) decided that the dynamic IP address of a website visitor is “personal data” under Directive 95/46EC (Data Protection Directive) in the hands of a website operator that has the means to compel an internet service provider to identify an individual based on the IP address.
On May 12, 2016, the Court of Justice of the European Union’s (CJEU) Advocate General, Campos Sánchez-Bordona, published his opinion on a question referred to the CJEU for a preliminary ruling. The opinion argues that dynamic IP addresses should be considered to be personal data under European law. Moreover, the opinion asserts that Member States’ laws that limit the ability to store such personal data beyond the restrictions permitted in Directive 95/46EC (the Data Protection Directive) are non-compliant with European law. Although the CJEU’s final decision does not have to follow this opinion, the advocate general’s arguments are followed more often than not.