EU Considers Reviving Plan To Scan Private Messaging

A controversial plan could turn private messaging services into surveillance tools.

The EU could soon be scanning your chats as the so-called Chat Control proposal is looking set to be adopted as early as October 14, 2025

The European Union is is still pushing for a universal scanning requirement and is moving closer to the biggest peacetime surveillance experiment in its history. Their plan involves quietly searching every private message before it is sent.

For more than three years, talks have stalled over whether providers should be made to scan all user massages for possible illegal material and forward anything suspicious to law enforcement.

The proposal dubbed “Chat Control” is regaining momentum, with 19 out of 27 EU member states now reportedly backing the measure.

Reclaim The Net reports: In contrast, the European Parliament insists any checks should apply only to unencrypted messages from people already under suspicion. Attempts to strike a deal have repeatedly fallen apart, with Poland the latest presidency to walk away without an agreement.

July brought a change in leadership of the Council of the EU, with Denmark stepping in and putting chat scanning back at the top of the legislative pile. Copenhagen wants this handled as a priority and wasted no time tabling a new draft on its very first day in charge.

Leaked records from a closed door July meeting show the Danish text closely tracks earlier proposals from Belgium and Hungary, with no concessions for encrypted conversations. A softer version from Poland, which would have made scanning voluntary and left encrypted chats alone, has been dropped entirely.

Out of 27 EU countries, 20 spoke during the July debate, each lodging what officials call a “comprehensive audit reservation.” Germany summed up the atmosphere by noting, “the familiar mood was clear.”

Italy, Spain, and Hungary have been in favor of mandatory chat scanning from the start. France could tip the balance since blocking the plan requires four countries representing at least 35 percent of the EU’s population. Paris has moved from tentative support to saying it could “basically support the proposal.”

Others remain cautious or opposed. Belgium, despite earlier enthusiasm, admits encrypted scanning is “a difficult topic nationally.” Estonia reports a “national conflict between security authorities and data protection officers regarding encryption and client-side scanning.” Austria is bound by a parliamentary vote against mandatory scanning or undermining encryption, a stance shared by the Netherlands. Luxembourg and Slovenia say they are still “not yet convinced.”

Poland warns the scheme weakens cybersecurity and opens the door to “attacks from abroad,” calling consent requirements meaningless because “it is not voluntary.” Germany has opposed encrypted scanning for two years but has yet to confirm whether the new government will stick to that position.

The Council’s own Legal Service concluded long ago that the plan clashes with fundamental rights. Their view remains: “The core problems of access to communications of potentially all users remain unchanged.” They stress that “client-side scanning is a violation of human rights and does not depend on the type of technology.”

Despite years of warnings from technologists, lawyers, and privacy campaigners, the decision now appears to hinge more on politics than evidence. Denmark has already circulated a lightly revised second draft. The next round of Council negotiations is set for September 12, with advocates hoping for final adoption by October 14.

Patrick Breyer, former MEP for Germany’s Pirate Party, says governments that opposed chat control last year are now wavering “even though the 2025 plan is even more extreme.”