How protected is email privacy from investigative authorities?

The Supreme Court’s judgment of 8 June 2026 in case 1-22-7314/268 raises important questions about email privacy and investigative authorities’ access to emails. NAMM attorney-at-law Kristjan Tuul wrote in Postimees why this issue should concern every email user, not only the parties to one particular criminal case.

The Supreme Court explained that when an investigative authority gains access to the content of emails through a service provider, this may constitute an interference with the confidentiality of messages protected under § 43 of the Constitution. The judgment also considered it problematic that the entire contents of an email inbox had been requested, without limiting the request, for example, to the time period covered by the suspicion.