CyprusΟ Περί Ορισμένων Πτυχών των Υπηρεσιών της Κοινωνίας της Πληροφορίας και ειδικά του Ηλεκτρονικού Εμπορίου Νόμος του 2004 (Information Society Services and Electronic Commerce Law), Intermediary Liability
Information Society Services and Electronic Commerce Law of 2004 (Ο Περί Ορισμένων Πτυχών των Υπηρεσιών της Κοινωνίας της Πληροφορίας και… ειδικά του Ηλεκτρονικού Εμπορίου Νόμος του 2004), Law 156(I)/2004 as amended by 97(I)/2007, Articles 15 to 18
In force since .
An intermediary liability rule binding private bodies.
- Obligation class
- Reporting, Disclosure
As of .
What it requires
- To keep the hosting exemption, have no actual knowledge that the activity or the stored information is unlawful (and, for damages claims, no awareness of facts or circumstances from which it is apparent), or act expeditiously to remove the information or disable access to it as soon as you gain that knowledge or awareness.
- The hosting exemption does not apply where the recipient of your service acts under your authority or control.
- Tell the Competent Authority promptly of any suspicion of illegal information or activity by your service recipients that comes to your attention, and give the competent authorities, on request, information that helps identify the recipients with whom you have storage agreements.
Who enforces it
Enforcement body
The Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, as the Competent Authority, who under Article 20 examines breaches and may apply to the court for an order under Article 21.
What this law does
Article 15(1) exempts a service provider from liability for information transmitted in an information society service that consists of transmitting information a recipient provides over a communications network, or of giving access to the network, provided the provider does not initiate the transmission, select its recipient, or select or modify the information transmitted.
Article 16(1) exempts a service provider from liability for the automatic, intermediate and temporary storage of information made for the sole purpose of making its onward transmission more efficient, provided the provider meets five conditions, including acting expeditiously to remove the stored information or disable access to it once it learns that the information has been removed from its original source, access to it has been disabled, or a court or administrative authority has ordered removal or disabled access.
Article 17(1) exempts a service provider from liability for information stored at the request of a recipient of the service if the provider has no actual knowledge of the unlawful activity or information and, for damages claims, is not aware of facts or circumstances from which it is apparent, or if on gaining such knowledge or awareness it acts expeditiously to remove the information or disable access to it.
Article 17(2) withholds that exemption where the recipient of the service acts under the authority or control of the provider. Article 17(3) leaves open a court or administrative order requiring the provider to stop or prevent an infringement. Article 18(1) imposes on providers no general obligation to monitor the information they transmit or store, and no general obligation to seek out facts or circumstances indicating illegal activity, for the services in Articles 15, 16 and 17.
Article 18(2) requires information society service providers to tell the Competent Authority promptly of suspected illegal information or activity by recipients that comes to their attention, and to give the competent authorities on request information that helps identify the recipients with whom they have storage agreements. The Competent Authority is the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism.
When LexLint raises it
When your app profile says your app operates a social platform.