The European Parliament has approved an extension of the European Union’s temporary Chat Control framework, allowing online communication providers to continue voluntarily scanning private messages for child sexual abuse material until 2028. The measure passed after a procedural vote in which a majority of voting lawmakers opposed the proposal, but failed to reach the higher threshold required to block it.
The vote centered on the temporary derogation from the EU’s ePrivacy rules, often referred to by critics as Chat Control 1.0. The framework gives providers, such as email and messaging platforms, a legal basis to voluntarily detect and report known or suspected child sexual abuse material and grooming activity on their services. It does not require companies to scan messages, but it permits them to do so under EU law.
During Thursday’s vote, 314 members of the European Parliament supported rejecting the extension, while 276 voted against rejection and 17 abstained. However, because the proposal was considered under the EU’s second-reading procedure, opponents needed an absolute majority of all 720 lawmakers, or 361 votes, to stop it. Failing to reach that threshold meant the extension was automatically approved.
The renewed framework will remain in force until 2028 unless it is replaced sooner by permanent legislation. Supporters argue the extension prevents a legal gap that could hinder efforts to detect and report child sexual abuse material while negotiations continue on broader EU legislation addressing online child protection.
The decision has drawn strong criticism from privacy advocates and several lawmakers, who argue the procedural process overrode the outcome of an earlier parliamentary vote. Critics also warn that allowing providers to continue scanning private communications raises concerns about digital privacy and could influence future discussions surrounding broader message scanning proposals.
The vote does not resolve the debate over the EU’s proposed Child Sexual Abuse Regulation, often called Chat Control 2.0 by opponents. That separate proposal remains under negotiation and could introduce a permanent legal framework governing how online platforms detect and report child sexual abuse material. Unlike the temporary extension, the broader proposal has prompted extensive debate over encryption, privacy rights, and the technical feasibility of scanning communications while preserving secure end-to-end encryption.