Chat Control 1.0 sneaks through the EU Parliament, letting companies scan user data without warrants — legal tactic used to force a majority-required re-vote on eve of Parliament break

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM - JULY 2: Members of the Committee of the Regions atttend a session of the CdR in the hemicycle of the European Parliament on july 2, 2026 in Brussels, Belgium. The CoR is the EU's assembly of local and regional representatives that provides advice on proposed legislation affecting regions and cities. Its function is to ensure that the voices of sub-national authorities are heard in EU decision-making and that the principle of subsidiarity is respected, meaning decisions are taken at the most appropriate level, closest to citizens when possible. (Photo by Thierry Monasse/Getty Images).

The Chat Control 1.0 law that enables warrantless mass scanning of digital communications has been voted against multiple times by the EU Parliament. And yet, just like a movie zombie, it keeps getting resurrected by various legal sleight-of-hand moves. Yesterday, one of those tricks worked, as Chat Control 1.0 passed (or rather, was not rejected) in a forced re-vote that required an absolute majority (50% + 1) for active refusal. This brings back the law until 2028, and sets a different stage for September's upcoming discussion on Chat Control 2.0.

After the impending publication in the EU Official Journal, online direct-communication platforms will be allowed to mass-scan their users' data without the need for a warrant, under the guise of looking for child sexual abuse material (CSAM).