EU's ProtectEU Strategy Quietly Revives Push for Encryption Backdoors
European Commission Revives Push for Encryption Backdoors in ProtectEU Strategy
The European Commission's new ProtectEU internal security strategy, announced this week, outlines a multi-year vision that includes a renewed push to undermine end-to-end encryption. While stopping short of concrete proposals, the strategy uses euphemisms like 'lawful and effective access to data' and 'technological solutions for accessing encrypted data' to lay groundwork for potential backdoors. Critics argue that any backdoor would weaken security for all, including against the very threats the EU cites. The strategy also proposes increased intelligence sharing and expanded Europol powers.
But this is not a promise anyone can make, considering that once there, a backdoor is effectively available to all actors, including those hostile states and non-state actors the EU purports its strategy is there to protect against.
- bradley13
The European Commission has far too much power, and answers far too little to the populace. In reality, they want to be dictators.
If you don't know, the unfortunate way thf EU is structured, the Parliament cannot initiate legislation. They can only vote on whatever the Commission puts in front of them.
If the Parliament votes "wrong", the Commission just repackages the idea in a new bill, pulls a couple of dirty tricks, and tried again. They only have to succeed once. See ChatControl for a prime example.
So the EU will eventually require backdoors in encryption. It's only a question of how many tries it takes...
- random3
And, of course, no thought is given to the implications this could have in conjunction with the next Orban. Europe is aligning against Russia as a threat, while at the same time shooting itself in the foot by disabling basic rights like privacy with absolutely no memory of how much more basic lack of privacy (enabled by Facebook) was leveraged with relatively simple tools (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facebook–Cambridge_Analytica_d...) to help Brexit happen (effectively breaking Europe apart).
This quote from Apocalypto stuck with me
"A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has destroyed itself from within."
- jbstack
With all the current concerns about rogue and mis-aligned AI, and about how we've made essentially zero progress on making sure that AI is safe and trustworthy, NOW you want to put backdoors in encryption algorithms? We should be doing everything we possibly can to make our systems more secure, not less.
This type of policy was terrible when they first thought of it. Now it's outright negligent and dangerous.
- Kim_Bruning
Meanwhile the latest gen ai agents are able to crack everything not nailed down. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49494301
Leaving holes might not be the best plan atm
- microtonal
Is the actual text of the workplan somewhere? The linked article refers to the text
more effective tools for law enforcement
in the press release and then infers or implies that this means more encryption backdoors, but I could not find that in an actual EU text?
(Edit: I'm not doubting that they want to make backdoors mandatory, I'd just like to see the actual text.)
- teekert
Oh man I will never let them read my private comms. So what are they going to do to me? I’m afraid that I, as a good person and father, am going to be punished for not letting them read my private messages. I’m afraid for my future in the EU.
- tonis2
Stuff like that make people want to leave EU, not some "enemy propaganda"
which is real unfortunate in current times.
- AnssiH
This is from April 2025.
Also, whether the plan pushes for backdoors is debatable since those are not actually mentioned.