Overview
- Parliament voted 331–304 with 11 abstentions on Tuesday to accept an urgency motion that opens a fast‑track final vote this Thursday to reinstate the 2021 transitional ‘Chat Control 1.0’.
- If the plenary approves the measure on Thursday and member states follow, the exception would permit voluntary provider scans of private chats to detect child sexual abuse material and remain in force until April 2028.
- The Council of the EU set this process in motion by adopting a position without public debate on July 2, a step that automatically triggered Parliament’s urgency procedure and drew accusations of procedural rule‑gaming.
- Major providers including Google, Meta, Snap and Microsoft say they will keep voluntary automated scanning and reporting to bodies such as NCMEC, creating practical continuity even as civil liberties groups warn of high AI error rates and privacy risks.
- Broader negotiations over a permanent ‘Chat Control 2.0’ covering mandatory scanning and end‑to‑end encryption remain deadlocked, and opponents have signaled legal challenges and political fights that could shape how detection, privacy and law enforcement balance in future rules.