LED

The LED establishes data protection safeguards for law enforcement processing. It grants individuals rights when their data is processed by police, prosecutors, and courts, while providing appropriate flexibility for effective law enforcement. It complements the GDPR by covering the criminal justice domain.

The Law Enforcement Directive regulates personal data processing by police, prosecutors, and courts for criminal law purposes. Unlike the GDPR which excludes law enforcement, the LED provides targeted protections balanced against public security needs. Individuals have rights to access their data, request correction, and lodge complaints, though these may be restricted during active investigations. Controllers must implement appropriate safeguards, distinguish between different categories of data subjects (suspects, victims, witnesses), and ensure data quality and purpose limitation. Transfers to third countries require adequacy decisions or appropriate safeguards. Member states supervise compliance through their data protection authorities, with some exceptions for judicial activities. The LED ensures that law enforcement cooperation across EU borders occurs within a consistent data protection framework.