The Belgian presidency of the Council of the European Union has abandoned its plans to examine messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Signal.
The Chat Control 2 proposal, aimed at using artificial intelligence (AI) to scan images, videos, and URLs in order to detect child sexual abuse material (CSAM) from user messages, was canceled on June 20 due to the lack of support needed to pass the controversial legislation.
According to Matthew Nimerg, the co-founder of Aleph Zero, the legislation was poorly devised and would undermine the rights of law-abiding citizens by proposing a client-side abuse monitoring scheme. Nimerg also stated that the law, if enacted, would be more invasive for ordinary users than for criminal elements. He noted that it would not prevent technically savvy criminals from using other open-source software tools to bypass the law, and that it would ultimately only harm those who abide by the law.
The EU initially proposed wider-reaching chat control legislation in 2023, which would have allowed access to text messages and audio. However, it has since been scaled back to scanning images, video, and URLs using AI, with user consent required to access this feature. But critics warn that this watered-down legislation could be a stepping stone for additional measures.
Iceland’s crypto industry faces energy challenges despite having a promising future. Nimerg warned that such mandates could be the beginning of a slippery slope and could allow regulators to prevent people from using other technologies, such as privacy-enhanced decentralized applications deployed on a blockchain.
The U.K. also recently passed the Online Safety Bill, a piece of legislation that raises concerns about government overreach and interference. This bill, which aims to protect children, also targets coercive behavior, sexual violence, people smuggling, suicide, self-harm, drugs, weapons, terrorism, and cruelty to animals. The bill prompted WhatsApp and Signal to consider leaving the country, but the crisis was resolved when regulators agreed to intervene only when scanning content was “technically feasible.”
Mark Johnson, an advocacy manager at Big Brother Watch, welcomed the news of the EU’s decision to put the brakes on chat control measures, emphasizing the potential impact on Brits’ privacy as well. He expressed hope that the U.K. would reconsider its own privacy-eroding legislation.
Looking ahead, MEP Patrick Breyer suggested that only the judiciary should have the power to order searches on messaging apps in order to avoid disproportionate mass surveillance and to achieve real results in protecting children.