The German regulation on the mass retention of communications data – which has been on hold since 2017 – essentially violates EU law, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled on Tuesday. The retention of data such as IP addresses or location data is only allowed “in the case of a serious threat to national security,” a ECJ press release read. Storing users’ internet traffic and location data as foreseen under the German law would allow for the drawing of conclusions about their private lives including everyday habits and social relationships, the press release said. Such profiling is an inter…