Alexander Throm, the internal policy spokesperson for the Union parliamentary group, has accused opposition parties of years of obstruction regarding the mandatory storage of IP addresses. During a discussion of the bill in the Bundestag on Wednesday, the CDU politician told the “Rheinische Post”: “After years of dispute, we, the Union, are pushing this through and creating an indispensable instrument for clarification in the digital world.”
Throm alleged that parties such as The Left, the Greens, the FDP, and the AfD had shirked their responsibility for years, significantly complicating the investigation of criminal acts in cyberspace. According to him, the German population had been exposed to unnecessary risks for years, and children had been left vulnerable to sexual abuse. “We are changing that now, and with a balanced regulation, we are creating more security for everyone,” Throm stated.
This regulation requires internet service providers to store data necessary for linking IP addresses for a period of three months. The goal is to enable investigators to trace network-based criminal offenses more frequently in the future.
