EU Parliament greenlights Chat Control 1.0

The European Parliament allowed an interim regulation permitting suspicionless mass scanning of private communications to pass on Tuesday, a measure it had rejected twice in March, according to a statement from civil rights activist and former MEP Dr. Patrick Breyer. Although a majority of voting MEPs opposed the regulation by 314 votes against to 276 in favor with 17 abstentions, the motion to reject it failed to secure the required absolute majority of 361 votes. As a result, mass scanning is permitted again until 2028. A symbolic exemption was adopted for encrypted communications, though service providers do not scan these anyway. An amendment to restrict scanning strictly to suspects identified by the judiciary received 322 votes in favor and 255 against but also fell short of the absolute majority. Breyer called the outcome a farce that damages democracy and jeopardizes a permanent child protection regulation. Negotiations for a permanent law are set to resume in September. The interim regulation allows U.S. tech companies to scan private messages on platforms such as Instagram, Discord, Snapchat, Skype, Xbox, Gmail and iCloud without a warrant. End-to-end encrypted chats such as WhatsApp remain exempt. European providers have never implemented such measures. The EU Commission admits there is no evidence suspicionless scanning has increased convictions or rescued children.