Europe Postpones 'Chat Control' Vote

EU Justice and Home Affairs Council Halts Voting, Sees Opposition Akshaya Asokan (asokan_akshaya) • October 13, 2025

A European content scanning proposal intended to enhance online child safety stalled after German lawmakers voiced opposition and member states canceled a planned vote on the measure's adoption.

See Also: Agentic Commerce: The Technology Shaping the Future of Payments

The EU Justice and Home Affairs Council was set to vote Tuesday on Chat Control, which would require online service providers to scan communications and files on users devices for child sexual abuse material. The proposal has provoked criticism over its invasiveness since it was first introduced by the European Commission in 2022 (see: EU's LIBE Rejects Mass Content Scanning in CSAM Proposal).

The Danish presidency has made it a priority to pass Chat Control during its turn at the head of the European Union. Previous iterations of the proposal put ...