German Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann (FDP) brought a breath of fresh air to the data retention debate in Germany this week. For a long time now, the liberal FDP party wanted to abandon the idea of general data retention that does not require a specific reason, as favored by Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD). According to the draft Buschmann presented, Germany wants to go a significantly different way than the EU with a quick freeze approach. Falk Steiner has analyzed the draft.