00:00Is the EU about to start scanning your text messages?
00:05For years, claims have been circulating that the European Union wants to enable governments
00:10and private companies to read people's text messages as part of a planned law clamped down
00:15on online child sexual abuse. Recently, these claims have intensified with users alleging
00:20the blog will scan all encrypted messages even as they're being typed, making users fear for
00:26their privacy. It's often referred to as chat control. But the idea that Europeans have to
00:31brace themselves for the immediate end of private messaging is misleading. The possibility of
00:37scanning private messages is part of this planned new law on child sexual abuse, and it is indeed
00:42being considered. But the Commission is proposing specific and limited detection orders. While
00:47there are legitimate concerns that this could spell the end of digital privacy as we know it,
00:52proponents insist that detection orders do not apply by default to everyone and would be
00:57limited in time and scope. They would also have to be requested by a national authority,
01:02and then approved by a court or an independent authority. Secondly, the Commission's proposal
01:06is only the starting point. For the law to pass, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU
01:11both need to agree on exactly the same text, which has not happened yet. In fact, the Parliament has
01:17already voted for changes that go against broad scanning, especially for encrypted apps. And the
01:22Council is itself split. A majority of countries like France, Spain and Italy are in favour of strong
01:28scanning rules, while Austria, the Netherlands and Poland have said they will not accept them. Others,
01:33including Germany and Belgium, remain undecided. Because of this division, several planned votes have
01:38been delayed. A new one is now scheduled on the 12th of September. So there is a legitimate debate
01:44about whether this proposed law can tread the line between safeguarding children on one hand
01:49and ensuring online privacy on the other. But panic that the EU is about to immediately scan messages
01:55even before they're being sent is still premature.
Comentarios