Evolving challenges and legal safeguards in processing user data in electronic communications

The author analyzes evolution of the legal-regulatory framework towards privacy and personal data protection in electronic communications at EU and Croatian level, from the point of view of traditionally guaranteed human rights such as respect for private life and confidentiality of communications, and challenges arising from technological development and proliferated processing of data relating to individuals. Legal safeguards as regards processing of different types of user data mainly by operators in the scope of providing publicly available electronic communication services, are examined under EU law (chiefly the ePrivacy Directive) and Croatian law (primarily rules in the Electronic Communications Act transposing the ePrivacy Directive). In this analysis the author also puts forward de lege ferenda proposals, where relevant and appropriate. Findings of close connections to general personal data protection rules and human rights guarantees at EU and domestic law level are supported throughout the paper by case examples and interpretations of EU law. At domestic level they are also supported by more recently adopted legislative solutions towards regulatory cooperation in the area. In the overall research in this paper should be looked at also from a broader angle, i.e. evolving legal frameworks at both EU and international law level to address new(er) challenges for rights of individuals as regards processing of data relating to them, in the context of advanced information and communication technologies, and as supported by trends in globalization.