Overview

• Austria’s coalition agreed on June 18 to allow police to install spyware on suspects’ devices to intercept encrypted messages on apps like WhatsApp and Signal.
• Each deployment of the so-called Bundestrojaner must receive case-by-case approval from a three-judge senate at the Federal Administrative Court.
• Interior Minister Gerhard Karner called the measure essential for terrorism prevention after the Graz school shooting and expects 5 to 15 encrypted surveillance requests per year.
• NEOS MPs Stephanie Krisper and Nikolaus Scherak, the FPÖ and civil rights groups warn the law infringes fundamental liberties and could expose data of uninvolved third parties.
• The measure is budgeted at €50 million, slated to take effect in early 2027, and may be paired with a planned social media user registration requirement.