The controversial plan to monitor chat messages of European citizens, known as “Chat Control,” will be back on the European political agenda this October. Patrick Breyer, the outgoing European Parliament member for the Pirate Party, reports this development on Twitter. You can also view the PDF document – Draft agendas for Council meetings during the second semester of 2024 (Hungarian Presidency) – here.
Belgium, the former EU president, canceled a recent vote on the plan in the Council of the European Union due to insufficient support. The Belgian authorities had proposed requiring “high-risk” chat services to implement government software for inspecting all messages (including end-to-end encrypted) from European users, termed “upload moderation.”
For years, experts, civil rights groups, and chat service providers have warned about the potential impact on privacy and security. Chat services like Threema and Signal have stated they would leave the EU if such controls were implemented.
Germany and Poland are the main opponents of chat control within the EU, while countries like the Netherlands, Estonia, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, and Austria plan to abstain from voting, according to email service Tuta. Currently, the proposal has support from 63.7 percent of the EU population, just short of the 65 percent needed for approval.
Chat control discussions have been ongoing for two years. The vote planned for late June was postponed when it became clear there was no majority, even with France potentially voting in favor.
Despite the setback, chat control remains on the agenda. Belgium has indicated in a statement to TechCrunch that it wants to “fine-tune” the proposal.
Breyer reports that Hungary, the new EU president, has scheduled the topic for discussion in October, with a potential vote in December. “We must prepare now,” urges Breyer.
Joint statement calls for withdrawal of CSA regulation
On July 1, European Digital Rights (EDRi) and 47 other civil society organizations issued a joint statement addressed to the Hungarian Council Presidency and several member state permanent representatives. The statement calls on the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament to demand the withdrawal of the draft Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) Regulation by the European Commission, also known as “Chat Control.”
The statement comes after four consecutive EU Council presidencies failed to broker a deal on the controversial regulation. The signatories argue that the proposal is fundamentally flawed and misguided, citing concerns about generalized monitoring of private communications and the undermining of digital security through the breaking of encryption.
The organizations emphasize that there is no simple technological solution to the complex issue of child sexual abuse. They warn that the proposed regulation could have unintended consequences, including risks to adolescents’ consensual sexual self-expression and threats to the privacy of various groups who rely on secure communications.
The statement recommends alternative approaches, including:
- Developing new, lawful, targeted, and technically-feasible solutions in collaboration with various expert groups.
- Focusing on implementing the Digital Services Act to address illegal content.
- Investing in national child protection hotlines and awareness campaigns.
- Pursuing primary prevention measures, such as education and societal initiatives to prevent abuse.
The signatories represent a diverse range of interests and expertise, including digital rights groups like Access Now and Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), national organizations such as Bits of Freedom from the Netherlands and Digitalcourage from Germany, as well as international bodies like the Internet Society. Child protection advocates, including Der Kinderschutzbund Bundesverband e.V., have also joined the call, emphasizing the need for a more nuanced approach to child safety.
