EU Parliament Fast-Tracks Controversial Private Message Scanning Rules
EU now one step away from reviving private message scanning rules
The European Parliament has approved an urgent procedure to revive expired rules allowing platforms to voluntarily scan private messages for child sexual abuse material. This move bypasses standard committee stages, setting up a decisive vote on whether to reinstate the legal framework that lapsed in April. Critics argue this unprecedented attempt to resurrect rejected legislation threatens digital privacy and democracy across the EU.
A dark day for privacy & democracy.
- budududuroiu
The Internet Watch Foundation, an organisation funded by almost all of big tech, is already at work pushing for client side scanning next [1], for the children, of course.
[1] https://www.iwf.org.uk/policy-work/preventing-the-upload-of-...
- inigyou
The Chat Control 1.0 rule is simply that organisations like Meta are allowed to scan messages if they want to. In other words your Facebook messages are not private from Facebook. Surely we already knew and expected that.
Chat Control 2.0 is the worrying one because it mandates scanning and bans E2EE.
These two things should not have both been given the same branding.
- PowerElectronix
Tough week for euros. Cars that record your face while driving and now apps snooping on communications.
- Nidhug
For my fellow EU citizens, you can contact your representatives here: https://fightchatcontrol.eu/
- klipklop
Of course they are. They will boil the frogs slowly until they get the frog soup they so desire. Each time the water gets a little bit too hot (public outrage) they will turn it back down for a bit.
Every major global region has this problem. I would tell you the slope is slippery, but I already fell down and cracked my head open.
Joking aside, this privacy invasion will keep happening until there are laws passed (a foundational constitution perhaps?) that make it impossible to attempt to even create such laws/rules.
- wewewedxfgdf
Even if defeated, this is Terminator legislation - it will never stop coming back until it wins.
- 63stack
Can anyone explain something? Since there are so many open source chat applications, what keeps anyone from "just" exchanging a key with someone else out of band, and then modifying the client so that it uses that key to encrypt all communication? I understand that this does not scale to big groups, but surely whoever is pushing this crap must have thought about this? Or is the idea that we will have completely locked down PCs as well ala android and ios so you can't run anything unapproved?
- red_admiral
This is about 1.0, which sounds ok - it basically allows providers a legitimate exception from data privacy laws to scan for CSAM in not E2EE communications. I reckon gmail, iCloud mail and the like already scan attachments for malware and emails for phishing scams, now they can also scan for child abuse.
cc 2.0 is a different beast.