On Thursday, the European Parliament adopted a temporary derogation from ePrivacy rules—known as Chat Control 1.0—that permits the mass scanning of private communications to detect online child sexual abuse material. The regulation will remain in force until 3 April 2028, providing a substantial buffer while lawmakers negotiate the permanent framework, Chat Control 2.0.
The extension was secured through a procedural maneuver rather than a direct vote on the policy’s merits. In March, MEPs had rejected extending Chat Control 1.0 after talks collapsed. But in late June, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola reopened the file, sending it to the Council with a warning that the expired rules left a dangerous gap in child protection. The Council returned the file to Parliament at the start of the summer recess, when securing the necessary majority to dismiss it again proved difficult.
How the Vote Unfolded
In the Parliament, a simple majority initially supported rejecting the Council’s position, with 314 MEPs voting in favor, 276 against, and 17 abstentions. However, because an absolute majority—currently 360 MEPs—was required to reject the amended position, the second reading was closed after 276 voted in favor, 286 against, and 30 abstentions. The amended package has now been sent to the Council for approval within three months.
The amended text includes a cosmetic change proposed by the liberal RENEW group, which would “exclude communications to which end-to-end encryption is, has been, or will be applied” from the law’s scope. While some MEPs have called this “a glimmer of hope,” it is unclear how extensive the list of such communication channels could be. Since this amendment may contradict the very purpose of mass scanning, the Council is likely to reject it. Previous Council positions on Chat Control 2.0 have included similar statements about protecting privacy and encryption, but no technical debate on how to reconcile the two goals in practice.
Cross-Party Opposition
The extension has ignited widespread opposition across the political spectrum. Svenja Hahn, the recently re-elected ALDE Party President and German MEP, told EUTechLoop: “It’s a disgrace that the Chat Control instrument has passed in the European Parliament. It opens the door for mass surveillance of all private communication of our European citizens instead of the targeted fight against child sexual abuse as proposed by the Parliament. The surveillance of private chats pushed by EU-states is a threat for our freedom and democracy. We need to continue fighting against Chat Control.”
Lyudmyla Kozlovska, President of the Open Dialogue Foundation, commented: “That vote should trouble anyone who cares about how democracy in the EU works, not just about privacy. It’s the same approach to normalising the erosion of privacy that we’ve seen before—first with financial privacy, then travellers’ data, now our communications: a sweeping power justified by an urgent-sounding purpose, then quietly normalised. And the result? Financial, security and cybersecurity laws are now heavily weaponised by adversaries of the EU against its own citizens and entities, for transnational repression. The real fight for encryption and the privacy of communication is in September, over Chat Control 2.0. Between now and then, the resistance has to be strong enough that no procedural trick can carry it.”
Opposition spans left-wing, liberal, and right-wing politicians, privacy advocates such as former MEP Patrick Breyer, cybersecurity specialists, and human rights advocates with experience outside the EU. At the member-state level, the files are normally led by representatives from Ministries of the Interior, and only a small number of countries are actively debating the proposal from data protection, private communication, and cybersecurity perspectives.
For more on the broader context of privacy erosion in the EU, see our analysis of how the Parliament previously voted to shield encrypted chats. The upcoming debate on Chat Control 2.0 will be critical, as the Parliament is set to vote again on extending message scanning.
