Information on Parties
Information for providers
on Parties to Budapest Convention
Partnership agreement with providers
In Hungary it is an obligation for the ISPs to answer law enforcement requests based on the Act XIX of 1998 on Criminal Proceedings. Beside this, the Hungarian Police has some special agreements with major ISPs.
Powers to request information
Production order
In the sense of Article 18 of the Budapest Convention
Competent authority
court, public prosecutor, the investigating authority
Basis in law
Article 71 of Act XIX of 1998 on the Criminal Proceedings (ACP) - Official requests for information
(1) The court, the prosecutor and the investigating authority may contact central and local government agencies, authorities, public bodies, business organisations, foundations, public endowments and public organisations to request the supply or transmission of information, data or documents, and may prescribe a time limit for fulfilling such request ranging between a minimum of eight and maximum of thirty days. Encrypted data and information made unrecognisable in any other manner shall be restored in their original condition by the supplier prior to communication or delivery, or made cognisable to the requestor thereof. Data supply shall be free of charge. Unless stipulated otherwise by law, the organization contacted shall fulfil the request within the prescribed deadline or state the reason for non-compliance therewith.
(2) The court, the prosecutor and the investigating authority may also contact the local government and other authorities for the supply of documents.
(3) Requests concerning the provision of personal data shall only extend to the amount and type of data indispensable for the achievement of the objective of the request. The request shall precisely state the purpose of the data supply and scope of data required.
(4) If the personal data coming to the notice of the requestor as a result of the request are not relevant for the achievement of the objective of the request, the data shall be deleted.
(5) If the personal data specified in subsection (4) are contained in the original copy of a document, an abstract shall be made on the data relevant for the achievement of the objective of the request, and simultaneously the document shall be returned to the sender.
(6) If the organization contacted fails to fulfil the request within the prescribed deadline, or unlawfully refuses to fulfil the request, a disciplinary penalty may be imposed. In the event of unlawful refusal to comply with the request, the coercive measures stipulated herein may also be ordered in addition to imposing the disciplinary penalty, provided that the conditions set forth by law are met.
(7) If the organization requested is unable to fulfil the request on account of being prohibited by law, no further procedural action towards such organization may be taken to obtain the information possessed by it.
(8) If the conditions set forth in the Act on the Admission and Stay of Foreign Citizens are otherwise not fulfilled, the prosecutor and the court may make a motion to the responsible authority to issue a permission for the admission and stay of the foreign citizen, and in consideration of this foreign citizen his/her relative, whose testimony may hold evidence which presumably would not be available otherwise.
Article 158 – Common rules
(1) Measures taken in order to conduct a search, body search and seizure shall be effected with due respect to the person concerned, if possible, between the hours of 6:00 A.M. and 24:00 P.M. of the day. Due care shall be exercised in order to prevent the disclosure of private circumstances not connected with the criminal proceedings and unnecessary damage.
(2) The report on the measure shall indicate the place and circumstances where and under which the physical means of evidence or other object or object was found.
(3) Anyone interfering with the measure taken in order to perform search, body search or seizure may be forced to tolerate such measures and – with the exception of the defendant – may be subject to a disciplinary fine.
(4) The investigating authority shall execute the orders of the court concerning a search, body search and seizure by the deadline.
Article 178 (1) After the commencement of the criminal proceeding, the investigating authority may collect data in order to establish the existence and location of means of evidence; in the course of this activity, it may use the law enforcement databases of the police specified in a separate legal regulation, it may, according to the rules of official requests (Section 71) request documents, data and information from any third party, further, it may request an investigation from the head of the complaining or victim government or local government body, public body, business organisation, foundation, public foundation or civil organisation or the agency entitled to investigate, may inspect the scene of the criminal offence, may employ an advisor, and check the data obtained. In the course of collecting data, the investigating authority may select a person or object by presenting a photograph or picture recorded on another data medium and request information regarding the presented person or object.
If different for subscriber information
no
If different for traffic data
no
Form
Requests. No special requirements.
Preservation order
In the sense of Articles 16 and 17 of the Budapest Convention
Competent authority
court, public prosecutor, the investigating authority
Basis in law
ORDER TO RESERVE COMPUTER DATA
Article 158/A (1) Compulsion to reserve data means the temporary restriction of the right of disposal of a person possessing, processing or managing data recorded by a computer system (hereinafter: computer data) over specific computer data, in order to investigate and prove a criminal offence.
(2) The court, the prosecutor or the investigating authority shall order the reservation of computer data constituting a means of evidence or required to trace any means of evidence or the establishment of the identity or location of a suspect.
(3) From the time of being notified of the order, the obliged party shall reserve the data recorded by the computer system designated in the order, and ensure its safe storage, if necessary, separately from other data files. The obliged party shall prevent the modification, deletion, destruction of the computer data, as well as the transmission and unauthorised copying thereof and unauthorised access thereto.
(4) The party ordering the reservation of data may affix its advanced electronic signature on the data to be reserved. If the reservation of the data at its original location considerably hindered the activity of the obliged party to process, manage, store or transmit data, the obliged party may, with the permission of the issuer of the order, ensure reservation by copying the data into another data medium or computer system. After the copy has been made, the issuer of the order may wholly or partially relieve the restrictions concerning the data medium and computer system holding the original data.
(5) While the measure is in effect, the data to be reserved may solely be accessed by the court, prosecutor or investigating authority having issued the order, and – with their respective permission – the person possessing or managing the data. The person possessing or managing the data to be reserved may only be provide information of such data with the express permission of the issuer of the order during the effect of the measure.
(6) The obliged party shall forthwith notify the issuer of the order if the data to be reserved has been modified, deleted, copied, transmitted or viewed without authorisation, or an indication of an attempt of the above has been observed.
(7) After issuing the order for reservation, the issuer shall start to review the affected data without delay, and depending on its findings, and either order the seizure of the data by copying them to the computer system or other data medium, or terminate the order for their reservation.
(8) The obligation to reserve data shall be in effect until the seizure of the data, but no longer than for three months. The obligation to reserve the data shall terminate if the criminal proceeding has been concluded. The obliged party shall be advised of the conclusion of the criminal proceeding.If different for subscriber information
Article 71 is used. (please see above)
If different for traffic data
Article 71 is used. (please see above)
Form
Emergency situations
Definition of emergency situation
Article 68 Information Requests of Act XXXIV of 1994 on the Police
(1) The head of the investigation unit of the Police authorised to perform secret collection of information shall be entitled - subject to a prosecutor's permit - to request information relating a wilful criminal act punishable with two years' or more imprisonment from the tax authority, foreign exchange control authority, telecommunications service providers, health care institutions and the organisations handling their data as well as from other institutions handling data qualified as bank secrets, securities secrets, treasurer's secrets or other business secrets.
The investigation authority may specify a deadline for furnishing the requested information. Provision of information shall be free and shall not be refused. The information so obtained shall be used for the declared purpose only.
(1a) The police authority
a) responsible for uncovering and preventing internal crimes performing its tasks as specified in c) sub-paragraph of Paragraph (1) of Section 7, and
b) the counterterrorism authority performing its tasks as specified in sub-paragraphs aa) – ac) and c) of Paragraph (1) of Section 7/E
shall be entitled - subject to a prosecutor's permit - to request information relating a wilful criminal act punishable with two years' or more imprisonment from the authorities mentioned in Paragraph (1).
(1b) The police authority responsible for uncovering and preventing internal crimes and the authority responsible for counterterrorism may specify a deadline for furnishing the requested information. Provision of information shall be free and shall not be refused. The information so obtained shall be used for the declared purpose only. (2) As an emergency measure, the data request shall be promptly satisfied without a prosecutor's previous consent if any delay would be dangerous and the case is connected with drug trafficking, terrorism, illegal arms trading, money laundering or organised crime. In this case, the data request shall be marked as 'top urgency measure'. Simultaneously with submitting a request, the prosecutor's consent shall also be sought. If the prosecutor rejects the request, the data so obtained shall be promptly destroyed by the Police.
Article 203 of ACP– Covert data gathering subject to judicial permit
(6) If the permission procedure caused a delay that would jeopardise the success of covert data gathering, the prosecutor may, for a maximum period of seventy-two hours, order covert data gathering (exigent order). In this case, simultaneously with the order, the motion for the permit shall also be submitted. If the court has rejected the motion, a new exigent order may not be issued based upon the same facts.
Obligation to cooperate
Based on the provisions indicated above data request shall be fulfilled without delay.
Confidentiality obligation
Obligation of secrecy
Usual requests are basic level protected. Confidential or restricted requests can be send only to major ISPs.
Article 265 of CC – Misuse of classified data
(1) Any person who:
a) obtains or uses any classified data;
b) discloses any classified data to an unauthorized person, or withholds such data from a competent person;
is guilty of misuse of classified data.
(2) The penalty shall be:
a) confinement for a misdemeanour where the data is classified as restricted data;
b) imprisonment for up to one year where the data is classified as confidential;
c) imprisonment for a felony for up to three years where the data is classified as secret;
d) imprisonment between one to five years where the data is classified as top secret.
(3) Where misuse of classified data are committed by a person authorized for using classified data under the strength of law and it involves data classified as restricted, confidential, secret or top secret, such person is punishable by imprisonment for up to one year, two years, or between one to five years or two to eight years in accordance with the distinction made in paragraph (2).
(4) Any person who engages in preparations for misuse of classified data as under paragraph (2) c)-d) is punishable for a misdemeanour by imprisonment for up to two years, or for a felony by imprisonment for up to three years in accordance with the distinction made therein.
(5) Where a person authorized for using classified data under the strength of law engages in preparations for misuse of classified data as under paragraph (2) c)-d) is punishable for a felony by imprisonment for up to three years or by imprisonment between one to five years in accordance with the distinction made therein.
(6) Any person authorized for using classified data under the strength of law, who commits the criminal offense defined in paragraph (2) by way of negligence is punishable for misdemeanour by confinement, or by imprisonment for up to one year, two years or three years in accordance with the distinction made therein.
Article 266 of CC
(1) Protection under criminal law shall also apply – for a period of thirty days from the time when classification is requested – to any data recommended for classification, where the classification procedure is pending at the time when the act was committed, and if the perpetrator is aware thereof.
(2) Cases of misuse of classified data may be prosecuted exclusively on the basis of a motion by teh body or person entitled to classify the specific type of data under the Act on the Protection of Classified Data.
Article 158/A of ACP
(2) The court, the prosecutor or the investigating authority shall order the preservation of data stored in an information system constituting a means of evidence or required to trace any means of evidence or the establishment of the identity or location of a suspect.
(3) From the time of being notified of the order, the obliged party shall preserve the data stored in the information system designated in the order, and ensure its safe storage, if necessary, separately from other data files. The obliged party shall prevent the modification, deletion, destruction of the data stored in an information system, as well as the transmission and unauthorized copying thereof and unauthorized access thereto.
(5) While the measure is in effect, the data to be preserved may solely be accessed by the court, prosecutor or investigating authority having issued the order, and – with their respective permission – the person possessing or managing the data. The person possessing or managing the data to be preserved may only be provided information of such data with the express permission of the issuer of the order during the effect of the measure.
Non respect of the obligation of secrecy
Article 70/C – Disclosure of classified data of ACP
(1) In the course of criminal proceedings the defendant, the defence counsel, the legal representative, the aggrieved party, the private prosecutor, the substitute private prosecutor, the private party, other interested parties, as well as the representatives of the aggrieved party, the private prosecutor, the substitute private prosecutor, the private party and other interested parties are entitled to know of those classified data which are contained in documents permitted to examine pursuant to this Act.
(2) The organisation classifying or managing the secret as specified in the Act on the Protection of Classified Data shall ensure that the parties enumerated in paragraph (1) may have access to the classified data permitted to know during the criminal proceedings even if the specific conditions thereof, set forth in a separate law, have not been fulfilled. In such a case the persons concerned shall be warned their obligation to keep the classified data by the acting court, the prosecutor and the investigating authority, as well as the criminal law consequences of the breach of classified data. The above warning shall be recorded in the minutes.
(3) In respect of the delivery of documents containing classified data the provisions of Article 70 shall be applied with the following deviations:
a) the document containing classified data shall only be served to the court, the prosecutor’s office or the investigating authority in compliance with the regulation on the protection of classified data,
b) the addressee shall make a statement on his adherence to the conditions set forth in the regulation on the protection of classified data; should the addressee state that he does not comply with these requirements or fails to make a statement, the addressee may not take the document containing such data out of the room of the court, the prosecutor’s office or the investigating authority designated for storing classified data, and only the extract of the document, not containing any certified data may be delivered to such addressee. The organisation classifying documents shall make a statement regarding the fact that the extract contains no certified data,
c) if the addressee makes a statement on compliance with the conditions set forth in the regulation on the protection of classified data, the court, the prosecutor or the investigating authority will deliver the document containing classified data to the addressee,
d) the restrictions stipulated in points a)-b) shall not apply to organisations having internal safety regulations on classified information.
(4) Prior to the delivery under paragraph (3) c), the court, the prosecutor or the investigating authority shall verify whether the statement made by the addressee is true to the facts. For this, the court, the prosecutor or the investigating authority may also consult the security chief, as identified in the regulation on the protection of classified data.
(5) The reproduction of documents containing classified data and the management of such copy shall be governed by the following provisions:
a) if observance of the regulation on the protection of classified data by those listed in paragraph (1) cannot be ensured, the persons entitled thereto shall be provided with a copy of the document containing classified data, however, they shall not be entitled to take this copy out of the room at the court, the prosecutor’s office or the investigating authority designated for storing classified data,
b) the copy shall be kept at the acting court, the prosecutor or the investigating authority, however, it shall be ensured that the copy may be examined by the persons entitled thereto during official hours without restrictions, and that the copy is made available to the same persons in the official premises of the court during the time of trial of the case.
Article 158/D of ACP
(10) The courts, acting ex officio or upon a motion to that effect by the prosecutor, may impose a fine between one hundred thousand and one million Hungarian Forints on electronic communications providers that fail to abide by the obligation to temporarily disable or to restore access to electronic data. Fines may be imposed repeatedly.
Exception
Data protection agreements
European Union Member States/ Adequacy
No
Convention 108
No
Additional Protocol ETS 181 to Convention 108
No
Domestic legal framework on data protection
No
Remedies
Article 195(1) of ACP - Legal remedy in the course of the investigation
(1) Anyone affected by the direct dispositions in the decision of the prosecutor or the investigating authority may lodge a protest against it within eight days following its communication, unless an exception is provided for in this Act.
Article 196 (1) of ACP
(1) Anyone whose rights or interests are directly affected by the measure or omitted measure of the prosecutor or the investigating authority may lodge a protest thereto within eight days of receiving information thereabout.
Safeguards
Article 28 (4) of ACP
Article 28 – Responsibilities of the prosecutor
(4) When the investigating authority conducts an investigation or certain investigative acts independently [Article 35 (2)], the prosecutor shall supervise compliance with this Act throughout the procedure (supervision over the investigation) and ensure that the persons participating in the procedure can assert their rights. To this end, the prosecutor
a) may order an investigation or the supplementation of the complaint, assign the investigating authority to conduct the investigation, may instruct the investigating authority to perform – within its own territory of competence – investigative acts or further investigation, or to conclude the investigation within the deadline designated by the prosecutor,
b) may be present at the investigative acts, and may review or ask for himself/herself the documents produced during the investigation,
c) may amend or repeal the decision of the investigating authority, and shall judge the complaints received against the decision, the measure and the lack of any measure of the investigating authority,
d) may reject the complaint, terminate the investigation and instruct the investigating authority to terminate the investigation,
e) may refer the proceedings in his own competence.
Sources and links
These profiles do not necessarily reflect official positions of the States covered or of the Council of Europe.