Netherlands won't back EU plan to monitor WhatsApp traffic for child sex abuse videos

The Netherlands is still not joining the plans of the European Union to combat child sex abuse videos on WhatsApp. The proposals have been watered down to protect privacy, but this has still not been done enough for the Netherlands and several other EU countries. There is likely an insufficient number of countries backing the proposal at this time.

The European Union (EU) has been looking for ways to combat child sex abuse videos on encrypted networks like Whatsapp, TikTok, Signal, and Instagram for years. These internet companies would have to scan their user's messages to do this, and critics claim this will come at the cost of their privacy.

Hungary, which holds the presidency of the EU countries for the first half of the year, hoped to persuade opponents by no longer ordering the networks to search for new child sex abuse videos but only for existing material. This was an essential wish of the Netherlands, and the Cabinet is "grateful" for this, Minister of Justice David van Weel wrote to the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament. However, the Netherlands "is still concerned."

Van Weel added that this is why the Netherlands cannot support the new law yet. Since even large countries such as Germany and Poland have not yet changed their minds, the proposal probably does not have the necessary majority of EU member states' approval.

The EU countries must agree with the European Parliament if it does. It also wants to implement several changes to protect privacy better.