Lawmakers from various European Union member states have united to oppose a proposal by the EU’s executive body to mandate tech companies to monitor their platforms for child sexual abuse content.
The 36 legislators have expressed concerns about data security, stating that the proposed measures are incompatible with EU basic rights.
The European Commission introduced the Regulation to Prevent and Combat Child Sexual Abuse in 2022 to combat the dissemination of material depicting the sexual abuse of children.
The regulation would require social media platforms to scan private encrypted chats for specific identifiers that could indicate child grooming or the sharing of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), and to report any suspicious activity.
Currently, monitoring online activity is voluntary. Critics of the proposed regulation have labeled it as “chat control,” fearing that it could lead to the scanning of all online communication, including encrypted messages, and potentially result in mass surveillance.
The issue is set to be discussed by EU member states’ representatives soon. Lawmakers from national parliaments and the European Parliament, including those from Germany and Austria, have signed an open letter urging members to vote against the proposal.
The letter emphasizes the importance of protecting the right to anonymous and pseudonymous internet use, as well as strengthening end-to-end encryption.
The lawmakers argue that combating child sexual abuse requires more resources and targeted coordination among European law enforcement authorities.
They believe that the current proposal compromises everyone’s digital privacy without effectively protecting children from online sexual violence.
Co-initiator Tobias Bacherle, a lawmaker for the German Green Party, stated that the compromise draft of the regulation fails to address these concerns.
