EDPS opens investigation into Europol over non-compliant processing

The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) has confirmed it is conducting a fact-finding investigation into Europol after media investigations revealed the agency stored vast quantities of sensitive personal data in an environment that failed to meet EU data protection standards.

Leaked internal documents and official testimonies published by ComputerWeekly disclosed that Europol amassed data, including telephone logs, financial transactions, geolocation records, and identity files belonging to unconvicted individuals, within its Computer Forensics Network (CFN). By 2019, internal audits identified critical security vulnerabilities in the CFN, such as inadequate admin logs, an inability to track who can access or modify sensitive data, and ineffective password management. Officials also reportedly deployed Pressure Cooker, a fast-track data-scraping tool operated by the Internet Referral Unit, which the EDPS is now scrutinising to determine whether enforcement action is warranted.

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