The European Union is grappling with a contentious proposal that pits child protection against privacy, sparking a heated debate among its member states. The proposed legislation, known as the Regulation to Prevent and Combat Child Sexual Abuse (CSAR) or “chat control,” aims to detect, report, and remove child sexual abuse material (CSAM) online. This move has been backed by multiple child protection groups, citing the alarming statistics of 100 million images or videos of children being sexually abused found online in 2023 alone.
However, critics argue that the proposal’s measures, such as scanning private messages and stored files using algorithms, would infringe on citizens’ digital privacy. The EU’s own data protection authorities, lawmakers, and countries like Germany and Poland have warned that it poses a disproportionate threat to privacy. Germany’s Justice Minister, Stefanie Hubig, emphasized that unwarranted chat monitoring must be taboo in a constitutional state.
The proposal’s fate hangs in the balance, with Germany’s position being crucial. If Berlin backs the proposal, it would likely push it past the post under the EU’s qualified majority voting rules. However, if Germany abstains or remains opposed, it would send negotiators back to the drawing board. Other countries, like France, Denmark, and Sweden, seem to prefer stricter measures, while others, like Poland and the Czech Republic, have expressed concerns about the impact on privacy.
The debate has sparked a massive campaign dubbed “Stop Chat Control,” with opponents flooding EU officials with messages. Tech giants like Signal and WhatsApp have also voiced their opposition, with Signal calling it “the end of the right to privacy in Europe” and threatening to leave the EU if the proposal is approved. The European Commission insists that there will be no general monitoring of online communications, but critics argue that the proposal’s measures would still be a disproportionate intrusion into citizens’ privacy.
