EU Data Act
Your dog tracker and your trail camera collect data about your dog and your ground. Since 12 September 2025 you have a legal right to that data. You also have the right to have it sent to someone else you choose, for example Jaktli. This page explains what the law says, what you can demand and how to write to the vendor. At the bottom there are ready-made letters to copy.
What is the Data Act?
The Data Act is an EU regulation that applies in every EU country, Sweden included. It has applied since 12 September 2025 and needs no national law to take effect. In Sweden the Post and Telecom Authority (PTS) is the authority that makes sure it is followed.
The law is about connected products: things that collect data about how they are used and can send that data on. Some examples from hunting:
- A tracking collar that sends the dog's position over the mobile network
- A trail camera with a SIM card that emails pictures or uploads them to a cloud service
- The app or cloud service that belongs to the tracker or the camera
The data such a product creates while you use it is called product data in the law. The manufacturer, or whoever runs the service, is called the data holder. You, who own or rent the product, are called the user. The rights belong to you.
What are you entitled to?
Three things, in short:
- To know before you buy. The vendor must tell you what data the product collects, how much, how often, and how you get at it. (Article 3)
- To get the data yourself. You can ask for the data. It must be handed over free of charge, without undue delay, in a common format a computer can read. Where technically feasible you must be able to get it continuously, that is in real time. (Article 4)
- To have the data sent to someone else. You can ask the vendor to send the same data straight to a third party of your choice, for example Jaktli. It must be free for you, and the receiver must get the data at the same quality the vendor itself has. (Article 5)
The vendor may not make it hard for you to use these rights, and may not steer you into using only its own app. The receiver may not use the data to build a competing tracker or camera, and may only use it for what you and the receiver have agreed. The vendor may charge the receiver a reasonable fee, never you.
New products must be built for this
Since 12 September 2026 new connected products must be designed so that you can easily access the data from the start. That applies to products placed on the market after that date. The right to get the data out, however, also covers products you already own.
What counts as your data?
All the data the product creates while you use it, in the form the vendor already has it. For a tracker that means, for example:
- The dog's position and the time of every position
- Speed, heading and altitude
- Battery level and signal strength
- Alerts, such as when the dog is at bay or leaves an area
For a trail camera:
- The pictures and videos
- The time of every picture
- Battery level, signal strength and temperature, if the camera measures it
- The camera name and location you entered
The data in the vendor's app or cloud service counts too. If you have seen it in the app, the vendor has it, and you can ask for it.
What the law does not give you
- The vendor's software and calculations. You are entitled to the raw data, not to the vendor's maps, apps or the way it works things out.
- Trade secrets, in narrow cases. The vendor may protect a trade secret with contracts and technical measures, but may not use that as an excuse to refuse everything.
- Other people's personal data. The data about your dog is yours. Data about other people is still governed by the GDPR.
- The radio link itself. A tracking collar that only talks to the handheld by radio is not connected in the sense the law means. What applies is the data the vendor holds, for example the tracks in the vendor's app and cloud service.
How to do it
- Find the vendor's customer service. There is usually an email address or a contact form at the bottom of the vendor's website, or under Help in the app.
- Write a short letter. Use one of the letters below and fill in everything in square brackets.
- Keep a copy of the letter and note the date you sent it.
- Give the vendor reasonable time to answer, say 30 days.
- If they refuse, or do not answer at all, send a reminder and cite the article again.
- If that does not help, you can complain to PTS. The right to complain is in Article 38 of the regulation.
Write in a language the vendor understands
Write to Swedish vendors in Swedish. For foreign vendors, English is the safe choice. That is why the letters below come in both languages.
Letters to copy
Copy the letter, replace everything in square brackets and send it by email. A good subject line is "Request under the EU Data Act".
Letter 1: I want my data myself (English)
Subject: Request for access to product data under the EU Data Act
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am the user of [product and model, e.g. "GPS collar X"] with serial
number/device ID [number]. My account with you is registered under
[your email address].
Under Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2023/2854 (the Data Act), I request
that you make available to me the data generated by my use of the
product and its related service. This includes, among other things,
positions with timestamps, speed, heading, battery level and alerts
[adjust to your product], together with the metadata needed to
interpret the data.
Article 4 requires the data to be made available without undue delay,
free of charge, in a comprehensive, structured, commonly used and
machine-readable format and, where technically feasible, continuously
and in real time. Please describe how I can obtain the data, for
example as a downloadable file or through an interface.
If you consider yourself exempt under Article 7, please state so in
writing and on what grounds.
I would appreciate a written reply within 30 days.
Kind regards,
[your name]
[address or phone number]Letter 2: I want the data sent to Jaktli (English)
Subject: Request to make product data available to a third party under
the EU Data Act
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am the user of [product and model] with serial number/device ID
[number]. My account with you is registered under [your email address].
Under Article 5 of Regulation (EU) 2023/2854 (the Data Act), I request
that you make the data generated by my use of the product and its
related service available to the following third party of my choice:
Ordinary Software Labs 2020 AB (the Jaktli service)
Company registration number 559256-6896, Sweden
Email: info@jaktli.se
This includes, among other things, [positions with timestamps, speed,
heading, battery level and alerts / images with timestamps and camera
name], together with the metadata needed to interpret the data.
Article 5 requires the data to be made available to the third party
without undue delay, free of charge to me, of the same quality as is
available to you, in a comprehensive, structured, commonly used and
machine-readable format and, where technically feasible, continuously
and in real time. Please describe how the transfer can be set up and
what you need from the recipient.
If you consider yourself exempt under Article 7, please state so in
writing and on what grounds.
I would appreciate a written reply within 30 days.
Kind regards,
[your name]
[address or phone number]Letter 3: I want my data myself (Swedish)
Ämne: Begäran om åtkomst till produktdata enligt EU:s dataförordning
Hej,
Jag är användare av [produkt och modell, till exempel "pejlhalsbandet X"]
med serienummer/enhets-ID [nummer]. Mitt konto hos er är registrerat på
[din e-postadress].
Med stöd av artikel 4 i Europaparlamentets och rådets förordning (EU)
2023/2854 (dataförordningen) begär jag att ni gör den data som produkten
och den tillhörande tjänsten har skapat vid min användning tillgänglig
för mig. Det gäller bland annat positioner med tidpunkt, fart, riktning,
batterinivå och larm [anpassa listan till din produkt], samt den
information som behövs för att tolka datan.
Enligt artikel 4 ska datan lämnas ut utan onödigt dröjsmål, kostnadsfritt,
i ett strukturerat och maskinläsbart format, och där det är tekniskt
möjligt löpande och i realtid. Jag ber er beskriva hur jag får datan,
till exempel som fil att ladda ned eller via ett gränssnitt.
Anser ni att ni är undantagna från kravet enligt artikel 7, ber jag er
ange det skriftligt och med vilken grund.
Jag ber om ett skriftligt svar inom 30 dagar.
Med vänlig hälsning,
[ditt namn]
[adress eller telefonnummer]Letter 4: I want the data sent to Jaktli (Swedish)
Ämne: Begäran om överföring av produktdata till tredje part enligt EU:s
dataförordning
Hej,
Jag är användare av [produkt och modell] med serienummer/enhets-ID
[nummer]. Mitt konto hos er är registrerat på [din e-postadress].
Med stöd av artikel 5 i Europaparlamentets och rådets förordning (EU)
2023/2854 (dataförordningen) begär jag att ni gör den data som produkten
och den tillhörande tjänsten skapar vid min användning tillgänglig för
följande tredje part, som jag själv har valt:
Ordinary Software Labs 2020 AB (tjänsten Jaktli)
Organisationsnummer 559256-6896
E-post: info@jaktli.se
Det gäller bland annat [positioner med tidpunkt, fart, riktning,
batterinivå och larm / bilder med tidpunkt och kameranamn], samt den
information som behövs för att tolka datan.
Enligt artikel 5 ska datan göras tillgänglig för den tredje parten utan
onödigt dröjsmål, kostnadsfritt för mig, med samma kvalitet som ni själva
har den, i ett strukturerat och maskinläsbart format, och där det är
tekniskt möjligt löpande och i realtid. Jag ber er beskriva hur
överföringen kan ske och vilka uppgifter ni behöver från mottagaren.
Anser ni att ni är undantagna från kravet enligt artikel 7, ber jag er
ange det skriftligt och med vilken grund.
Jag ber om ett skriftligt svar inom 30 dagar.
Med vänlig hälsning,
[ditt namn]
[adress eller telefonnummer]Common replies from vendors
| The vendor says | What you can answer |
|---|---|
| "We have no way of handing out data." | Articles 4 and 5 require you to hand over the data you already hold, in a common machine-readable format. A downloadable file is enough as a first step. |
| "You can see everything in our app." | Seeing the data in the app is not the same as getting it out. Article 4 gives me the right to receive it in a format I can use elsewhere. |
| "It is a trade secret." | Positions and pictures from my own product are not your trade secret. Articles 4(6) and 5(9) allow protection of a specific secret, not a refusal of all data. |
| "That only applies to new products." | The duty to design products for access applies to new products. The right to get data out under Articles 4 and 5 has applied since 12 September 2025, to products already sold as well. |
| "We are a small company." | The exemption in Article 7 covers only companies with fewer than 50 staff and at most 10 million euro in turnover or balance sheet total, that are not linked to a larger company. Please show that you meet it. |
Which companies are covered?
The law covers every manufacturer and service that sells to customers in the EU, wherever the company is based. There is an exemption for the very smallest companies. These are the rules:
| Condition | Covered by the duty? |
|---|---|
| The product or service is sold in the EU, wherever the company is based (Article 1(3)) | Yes |
| Micro or small enterprise: fewer than 50 staff and at most 10 million euro in turnover or balance sheet total (the EU SME definition) | No, exempt under Article 7(1) |
| Small enterprise that is owned by, owns or is linked to an enterprise that is not small | Yes, the exemption falls away |
| Small enterprise that makes the product or runs the service on behalf of a larger company | Yes |
| Medium-sized enterprise (fewer than 250 staff) that has been medium-sized for less than a year, and its products for one year after launch | No, a temporary exemption under Article 7(1) |
| Every other company, medium-sized and large | Yes |
| The receiver you name is a "gatekeeper" under the Digital Markets Act (Alphabet/Google, Amazon, Apple, ByteDance, Meta, Microsoft) | Such companies may not be the receiver (Article 5(3)) |
How big is my vendor?
Staff numbers and turnover are public. Swedish companies are listed on allabolag.se or with Bolagsverket, foreign companies in their annual reports. If the company belongs to a group, it is the group's size that counts. Most of the larger tracker and camera services sold in Sweden have more than 50 staff or belong to a larger group, and are therefore covered. Some of the smallest vendors may be exempt. If in doubt, ask the vendor itself to show which category it belongs to. That question is included in the letters.
Even an exempt company may share the data voluntarily. Send the letter anyway, and say that you know about the exemption but ask them to open up all the same.
We work with the vendors, but the right is yours
We contact the vendors ourselves and try to set up collaborations, so that the dog can show in Jaktli without you having to write any letters. That work continues. But you do not have to wait for us. The right to get the data out, and to have it sent where you want, is yours by law, and the more people who use it, the easier our conversations get. How it is going with the vendors is under Trackers we've contacted.
What Jaktli does itself
We think this is the right way, so we follow the same principle. The Jaktli OpenTrack app, which turns a spare phone into a tracker, can send the dog's positions to a server of your own choice instead of to Jaktli. Only the phone's own positions are sent, nothing from Jaktli comes along. See Send positions to your own server.
You can always download your own data in Jaktli under Export my data in your profile. An administrator can fetch the whole team's data, see Data export.
The law and the authorities
- The Data Act in full on EUR-Lex. Its full name is Regulation (EU) 2023/2854 of the European Parliament and of the Council on harmonised rules on fair access to and use of data.
- Article 3: information before purchase and requirements on new products
- Article 4: your right to get the data
- Article 5: your right to have the data sent to someone else
- Article 7: the exemption for small companies
- Article 38: the right to lodge a complaint with an authority
- The EU definition of small and medium-sized enterprises (Recommendation 2003/361/EC)
- The Digital Markets Act, which designates the gatekeepers
- PTS on the Data Act (in Swedish). PTS has been appointed competent authority in Sweden. A Swedish act with complementary rules, including penalty fees, is on its way.
- The European Commission on the Data Act
Not legal advice
This page is general information from us at Jaktli, not legal advice. If in doubt, ask PTS or a lawyer.
See also: Dog trackers, Game cameras, OpenTrack, Profile and Settings