Supreme Court of Cyprus to rule on police access to telecom data

The Supreme Court of Cyprus has referred a landmark case to its Full Bench regarding the legality of police access to telecommunications data. The central issue is whether law enforcement can access data maintained by providers for commercial or billing purposes to investigate and prosecute serious criminal offenses.

The case originated from a challenge to a Limassol District Court order issued in March 2026, which had granted access to the applicants' telecommunications data. Both parties requested that the matter be heard by the Full Bench, citing the gravity of the legal questions, the potential impact on a large number of future cases, and conflicting decisions from single-judge compositions of the Supreme Court.

The court will examine the matter in light of the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union to determine if data collected for commercial purposes can be utilized for criminal investigations.