The legal framework
Article 7 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights guarantees respect for private and family life, the home and communications; Article 8 adds the protection of personal data, implemented by the GDPR. Directive 2002/58/EC specifically protects the confidentiality of electronic communications, including messages exchanged in an app. The Charter applies only when member states implement Union law; beyond that, the European Convention on Human Rights, which is separate from the Union, takes over.
People often mix up the European Union and the Council of Europe. Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, and the court in Strasbourg that enforces it, sit outside the EU: privacy is guarded by two separate systems, each with its own judges.
The Charter has limits. A member state is bound by it only while carrying out Union law, for example when applying the GDPR. A dispute that is wholly domestic falls under national law and the Convention.
The ePrivacy Directive protects the confidentiality of electronic communications. It underpins the prohibition on a provider reading message content and the consent requirement for placing a tracker.
Key points
| Instruments | Charter of Fundamental Rights, Articles 7 and 8; Directive 2002/58/EC |
|---|---|
| Scope of the Charter | Binds member states when implementing Union law |
| Communications | Confidentiality protected, including private messages |
| Relationship | Outside Union law, the European Convention on Human Rights applies |
| Data | The GDPR is the operational instrument of Article 8 |
| Courts | Court of Justice for the Charter, European Court of Human Rights for the Convention |
In practice
- Start by asking whether the text is a regulation, which applies as it stands, or a directive, which each state must transpose and which therefore varies from one country to the next.
- Read the consolidated text on EUR-Lex: it already folds in every later amendment.
- Find the national statute that transposes it, since that is the text a judge will in fact apply.
- If the meaning is contested, search for Court of Justice rulings on the question.
- When the problem crosses a border, see whether a national contact point or a European network can assist.
Cost and coverage
Reading the law is free: EUR-Lex puts every text online at no charge, in twenty-four official languages and in consolidated versions. Money only enters the picture with professional legal advice, needed mostly where a directive and its national transposing statute interact, a situation frequent for directives and uncommon for regulations.
Where to go
- EUR-Lex, the official portal of Union law, publishing every text in twenty-four languages
- The European e-Justice Portal, for cross-border procedures
- Your Europe, the Commission's information service for citizens
- SOLVIT, the network that resolves misapplication of Union law by an administration
- The European Consumer Centre in your country, for cross-border consumer disputes
Worth knowing
The Union and the Council of Europe are separate organisations. The Convention on Human Rights and the Strasbourg Court belong to the latter, which has forty-six member states, among them Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Charter apply to every situation?
No, only where member states implement Union law. Outside that, the European Convention on Human Rights protects privacy.
What is the difference between Articles 7 and 8?
Article 7 covers private and family life, the home and communications; Article 8 covers personal data specifically, implemented by the GDPR.
Are my private messages protected?
Yes, Directive 2002/58/EC protects the confidentiality of electronic communications.
Which court hears a complaint?
The Court of Justice for the Charter; the European Court of Human Rights for the Convention, after domestic remedies are exhausted.
Official sources and links
- UN Human Rights Office — ratified treaties and country reviews
- ILO NATLEX — national legislation database