According to Art. 3 of Law No. 09-04, subject to the legal provisions guaranteeing the secrecy of correspondence and communications, implementation of technical devices carrying out operations of surveillance of electronic communications, collection and recording in real time of their content as well as searches and seizures in a computer system may be carried out for purposes of protection of public order, for investigations or after judicial request. Art. 4 lists instances when such surveillance may be carried out, including:
- to prevent offences qualified as terrorist or subversive acts and offences against State security;
- when there is information on a probable attack on a computer system representing a threat to public order, national defence, State institutions or the national economy;
- for the purposes of investigations and judicial information when it is difficult to arrive at results relevant to the research in progress without resorting to electronic surveillance;
- in connection with the execution of requests for international legal assistance.

Law No. 09-04 of 14, laying down special rules relating to the prevention and fight against offences related to information and communication technologies, establishes a safe harbour regime for intermediaries for copyright infringements. According to Art. 12 of the Law, internet service providers are required to intervene, without delay, to remove the content to which they authorise access in the event of a violation of the laws, store it or make it inaccessible as soon as they become aware of it directly or indirectly.

Law No. 09-04 of 14, laying down special rules relating to the prevention and fight against offences related to information and communication technologies, establishes a safe harbour regime for intermediaries for copyright infringements. According to Art. 12 of the Law, internet service providers are required to intervene, without delay, to remove the content to which they authorise access in the event of a violation of the laws, store it or make it inaccessible as soon as they become aware of it directly or indirectly.

Art. 11 of Law No. 09-04 requires communication service providers to store data allowing the identification of users of their services for a period of one year after the registration. This requirement covers all service providers, defined in Art. 2 to include any public or private entity which offers users of its services the possibility of communicating by means of a computer system and/or a telecommunications system and any other entity processing or storing computer data for communication services or their users.

It is reported that Algeria' approach to SIM registration requires mobile network operators to collect and share a user's personal information and proof of identity.

It is reported that the Regulatory Authority of Post and Electronic Communications (ARPCE), the executive authority for the supervision and administration of services in the telecommunications sector, is independent from the government in the decision-making process.

The last paragraph of Art. 44 of Law No. 18-07 forbids, in any case, the communication or transfer of personal data to a foreign country when this transfer is likely to carry harm to public security or the vital interests of the state.

Art. 8 of the Law No. 18-05 requires any e-commerce activity, which is defined as electronic commerce in goods and services, to have a website hosted in Algeria with a “.com.dz” extension. This requirement applies to both domestic and foreign e-suppliers as clarified in Art. 2, which states the legislation applies to e-commerce transactions where one of the parties to the e-commerce contract is of Algerian nationality, or legally resides in Algeria, or a legal person governed by Algerian law, or if the contract is concluded or performed in Algeria. Effectively, this means that the requirement to have domain names hosted in Algeria also applies to foreign companies.

Art. 10 of Decision No. 48/SP/PC/ARPT/17 stipulates that in the course of carrying out the activity covered by its authorisation to establish and operate hosting and storage services for computerised content, the "service provider" is obliged to guarantee that customer data is hosted and stored on national territory and to guarantee a backup solution for data hosted or stored. The term "service provider" is defined as any natural or legal person who has been granted authorisation to establish and operate hosting and storage services for computerised content for the benefit of remote users as part of cloud computing services, in compliance with the requirements set out in the legislation and regulations in force.

Algeria is a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

The Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Order No. 03-05 does not provide any fair use/fair dealing model for copyright exceptions. However, Arts. 33-53 provide a list of wide exceptions. These include: materials that are printed, audio, audio-visual or any other form prepared for school or university education; work converted for personal or family purposes; usage of decorative or illustrative drawing of a literary or artistic work in a publication, in an audio or audio video recording or in audio or audio video programs meant for teaching or professional training as long as it is intended to achieve the targeted purpose; free acting or performing of a work; libraries and document keeping centers, not aiming at making direct or indirect commercial profits, can reproduce a work without the author’s or right owner’s permission in response to a request from another library or document keeping center, or to maintain the work’s copy, or to compensate a damaged, lost or void one; and mass media institutions reproducing, circulating or conveying to the public articles on daily events published by newspapers, radio or television, without permission from the author or reward to him, provided that the author and the source are indicated, unless there is an express provision prohibiting its use for such purposes.

It is reported that digital piracy is pervasive and that enforcement mechanisms lack transparency and consistency, particularly with regard to online platforms and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) piracy.

Algeria has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Algeria has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

Algeria does not have a comprehensive framework in place that provides effective protection of trade secrets, but there are limited measures addressing some issues related to trade secrets in Art. 59 of Order No. 03-07 related to patents of invention, which provides that the competent judicial authority shall take into consideration the legal interests of the defendant when approving any required evidence through non-disclosure of commercial and industrial secrets.