- EU Commissioner backs Parliament’s position on targeted CSAM scanning
- Brunner dismissed surveillance risks and rejected the term “Chat Control”
- The trilogue negotiations start on Tuesday 9 December
After finally securing approval from the EU Council, the controversial Child Sexual Abuse Regulation (CSAR) is now ready for trilogues – the final round of EU legislative negotiations. Even with this milestone passed, a spirited debate in Brussels yesterday suggests a contentious road ahead.
During a discussion in the Committee on Citizens’ Rights, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) on Thursday 4 December, EU Home Affairs Commissioner Magnus Brunner delivered an assessment that probably caught many participants off guard.
Brunner admitted that – although he remains committed to the Commission’s original 2022 proposal – he favors Parliament’s position on targeted measures over the Council’s push for voluntary random scanning.
“I would prefer the Parliament’s position to the Council’s position because the Council’s position is a compromise of a compromise of a compromise. But I still think the Commission’s proposal is the best proposal,” Brunner said.
Despite that, Brunner flatly rejected the term ‘Chat Control’ – the nickname critics have attached to the bill since its inception. He also dismissed privacy concerns raised by Markéta Gregorová of the Czech Pirate Party, who compared the proposed voluntary scanning to “forcing every citizen to hand over every letter to the police to be opened and read before it is allowed to be sent.”
“It’s not about Chat Control, it’s about protecting our children, it’s about fighting the pedophiles,” Brunner argued.
All eyes are now on the trilogue negotiations between the EU Parliament, the Commission and the Council, which are due to begin on Tuesday 9 December with the aim of locking down a final, binding text.
Responsible for the parliament is Javier Zarzalejos, chairman of the LIBE committee and rapporteur. He stressed that lawmakers are entering negotiations with a “strong mandate” for targeted measures.
“Parliament is well equipped”
Although the bill has finally attracted the necessary majority in the EU Council, the latest iteration of Chat Control is far from gaining full support.
Italy, the Czech Republic, Poland and the Netherlands are still against the proposal. They are joined by many experts who have argued that it could be “a disaster waiting to happen.”
While the Danish Presidency decided to drop mandatory scanning duties for all messaging providers, many believe that the proposed voluntary solution could still lead to privacy and security violations.
“Let’s face it. Voluntary or not, mass scanning is still mass scanning of private communications. And it doesn’t help minors,” Gregorová said, echoing similar concerns from the tech world.
With experts warning that the council’s proposal threatens people’s privacy, Brunner’s stance favoring the more targeted surveillance offers a glimmer of hope for digital rights activists.
“Credit is due to Javier Zarzalejo for uniting the parliament on this crucial issue,” commented former German Pirate Party MEP and digital rights lawyer Patrick Breyer.
“With this strong mandate for fundamental rights and against arbitrary surveillance, Parliament is well equipped to fend off governments’ attacks on digital secrecy and the right to anonymous communications.”
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