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What happens to your private messages under 'Chat Control'?
5 hours ago
- EU law does not currently apply to end-to-end encrypted messages on platforms like WhatsApp and Signal.
- A temporary regulation allows voluntary scanning of unencrypted messages for child sexual abuse material (CSAM) until 2028.
- A permanent proposal, 'Chat Control 2.0', is under negotiation and may extend scanning to encrypted chats.
- Detection methods include hash matching (fast but with high false positives) and machine learning (error-prone, especially for text).
- Client-side scanning on encrypted services would inspect messages before encryption, raising privacy concerns.
- Human reviewers often misclassify content, leading to false reports, particularly involving teenage interactions.
- Alternatives include targeted court-authorized scanning and on-device warnings that never send data.
Bijdrage rondetafelgesprek Tweede Kamer Client Side Scanning - Bert Hubert's writings
3 days ago
- The EU proposal, known as 'chat control', mandates client-side scanning on chat apps to detect known/unknown child sexual abuse material and grooming, with automatic reporting to EU center and local police.
- False positives are a major concern; even a 0.1% error rate would generate vast numbers of incorrect reports, burdening authorities and potentially causing family disruption and wrongful investigations.
- Cybersecurity risks include software vulnerabilities, potential for malicious actors to trigger false reports, and the buildup of a central EU database of user content that could be hacked.
- The author argues the net effect on child welfare may be negative, as false reports can lead to serious harm, and suggests family-based alternatives where reports go to parents instead of authorities.
Proportionaliteit EU regelgeving materiaal misbruik kinderen - Bert Hubert's writings
3 days ago
- The EU proposal mandates scanning of all interpersonal communications (WhatsApp, etc.) for known and unknown child abuse material and grooming, affecting 500 million Europeans without exceptions for journalists, doctors, lawyers, or clergy.
- Proportionality analysis requires balancing the potential prevention of child abuse against the harms from false positives, privacy intrusions, and cybersecurity risks.
- Scanners are imperfect, leading to many false alarms; false positives can trigger police investigations that are highly damaging, as seen in the Dutch childcare benefits scandal.
- Even scanning only known material via fingerprints poses risks: databases may contain innocuous images, fingerprints can be manipulated, and the technology is opaque.
- The proposal violates recent privacy jurisprudence treating phones as private spaces, and bulk surveillance of non-suspects is likely unlawful.
- The scanner creates new attack surfaces for spyware like Pegasus and Predator, and EU bureaucracy could slow security updates, while data leaks from EU databases could devastate individuals.
- The proposal is disproportionate, likely to lose in court, and risks creating a new scandal similar to the Dutch childcare benefits affair.
Накратко за Chatcontrol 2025 - Bert Hubert's writings
3 days ago
- EU member states, led by Denmark, support mandatory scanning of images and links shared in chat apps like WhatsApp and Signal.
- AI will automatically scan content; if it suspects child pornography, your photo, location, phone number, and other info will be reported to Europol and local police.
- The consequences after reporting are unclear, but users may face unexpected police questioning abroad about their shared content.
- AI systems will be created and deployed by chat app companies, monitoring users on behalf of the EU.
- All content must be reported unless there is a 'manifestly unfounded' reason, meaning no substantial legal or factual analysis is needed.
- Even if a reported case is found innocent, a copy of the file will be retained in a database for future investigations.
- If the regulation passes, apps like WhatsApp will ask for permission to access all your shared photos and links, and their AI will autonomously decide whether to alert authorities.
- Police and child exploitation experts are already overwhelmed by the number of reports, yet politicians often fail to provide more resources for enforcement.
- The proposal creates a massive surveillance hub run by US corporations or third parties, which could later be used for other exploitative purposes.
- Governments have conveniently exempted their own security services, police, and military from the regulation.
- Germany is expected to support the proposal, likely making it law, and other governments are also backing it despite known risks.
- The text urges citizens to contact their representatives in the Bulgarian and European parliaments to voice their opinion.
French President Macron backs effort to ban kids under 15 from social media
8 days ago
- French lawmakers reached a compromise on a bill to ban social media for children under 15, aiming for enactment by September.
- The bill was amended after the European Commission found it partly incompatible with EU law; a final vote is set for Tuesday.
- The ban covers all social networking services except for online encyclopedias, educational tools, and open-source platforms.
- French President Emmanuel Macron supports the ban, which could be one of his last major measures before leaving office.
- The bill also prohibits mobile phone use in high schools.
- Concerns over social media's harmful effects on minors, such as reduced self-esteem and risky behavior exposure, drove the legislation.
- Global momentum for age restrictions on social media is growing, with similar moves in Australia, the UK, Turkey, and Indonesia.
- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for limits, including no screens for children under 3.
Class action suit over deepfake child sexual abuse material expands
21 days ago
- A class action lawsuit against AI companies SpaceXAI and Stability AI expands, alleging their models were used to create child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
- Plaintiffs accuse the companies of producing CSAM, benefiting from sex trafficking, negligence, defective product design, and creating a public nuisance.
- The case involves Jane Doe 4, whose stepfather used SpaceXAI's chatbot Grok to generate explicit images from a childhood photo, leading to trauma and family breakdown.
- SpaceXAI allegedly failed to adequately report CSAM to authorities, lacking sufficient information and not sharing perpetrator details.
- Stability AI, added as a defendant, is accused of enabling CSAM generation through open-weight models, despite previous efforts to filter content.
- AI tools have made nonconsensual intimate image creation mainstream, prompting investigations and bans in some countries.
- Plaintiffs seek stronger guardrails on AI models and monetary compensation for the harm caused.
Fines doubled as teens outsmart Australia's world-first social media ban
25 days ago
- Australia plans to double fines for social media platforms to A$99 million for failing to prevent under-16s from having accounts.
- 70% of children remained active on restricted platforms like Facebook and TikTok three months after the under-16s ban took effect.
- The eSafety Commissioner's powers will be expanded to demand information from platforms and third parties to enforce the ban.
- Communications Minister Anika Wells criticized Big Tech for not complying, stating the scheme is not working as intended.
- The opposition acknowledges the need for reforms but blames the original legislation for being underprepared.

Hasty Briefsbeta

child safety

What happens to your private messages under 'Chat Control'?

Bijdrage rondetafelgesprek Tweede Kamer Client Side Scanning - Bert Hubert's writings

Proportionaliteit EU regelgeving materiaal misbruik kinderen - Bert Hubert's writings

Накратко за Chatcontrol 2025 - Bert Hubert's writings

French President Macron backs effort to ban kids under 15 from social media

Class action suit over deepfake child sexual abuse material expands

Fines doubled as teens outsmart Australia's world-first social media ban