I am writing to express my strong opposition to the “Chat Control” proposal currently under consideration in the European Union. While I fully support the goal of protecting children and tackling abuse, this proposal poses an unacceptable threat to the privacy, security, and fundamental rights of all EU citizens.

The proposal would mandate the scanning of all private digital communications, including encrypted messages, photos, and files, without suspicion or consent. This is not targeted law enforcement. It is blanket mass surveillance affecting 450 million people.

I speak from direct professional experience. As a Director of Engineering for companies including Houzz Inc. and having worked alongside General Electric and many other enterprises, I have overseen large-scale secure systems handling sensitive customer data. I have worked closely with cybersecurity experts and compliance teams to implement lawful safeguards that protect both users and businesses.

Weakening encryption or introducing blanket scanning of private communications is not only technically dangerous but also creates vulnerabilities that malicious actors will inevitably exploit. Once such weaknesses exist, they cannot be contained or rolled back.

I am also surprised that Ireland, given its reliance on multinational technology companies, would consider supporting a measure that breaks one of the foundational principles of the internet: the right to private, secure communications. Our economic success is closely tied to being a trusted base for global technology, telecommunications, and security operations. If the EU undermines this trust, Ireland will be directly affected. We should be leading the opposition to such measures, not enabling them.

My concerns are as follows:

  • Mass Surveillance: All private messages, photos, and files would be automatically scanned, regardless of any suspicion, eroding trust in digital communications.

  • Breaking Encryption: Weakening or breaking end-to-end encryption would expose sensitive financial, medical, and personal data to hackers, criminals, and hostile state actors.

  • Violation of Fundamental Rights: This undermines Articles 7 and 8 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, which guarantee privacy and data protection as cornerstones of European democracy.

  • False Positives: Automated scanning is prone to errors, risking wrongful accusations and undermining genuine investigations.

  • Ineffective for Child Protection: Experts, including the UN, have warned that mass scanning is ineffective, diverts resources from proven protective measures, and ultimately makes children less safe by weakening security for all.

  • Dangerous Global Precedent: Such a policy would provide authoritarian governments with a model to justify intrusive surveillance, threatening privacy and free expression worldwide.

Given my professional background, I can assure you that there are more effective and rights-respecting approaches to protecting children that do not require undermining the digital security of every EU citizen.

I urge you to reject this proposal and instead support targeted, technically sound, and rights-preserving measures that genuinely improve child protection without sacrificing the core principles of European democracy. I also urge you to recommend to your colleagues to do the same.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I trust you will consider the long-term consequences for our democracy, security, and privacy.

Kind regards,

Jonathan Clarke