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TechRadar
TechRadar
Chiara Castro

The EU has never been closer to agreeing on the scanning of your private chats – but how did we get here?

Conceptual image of a large group of cctv camera watching and spying on a mobile phone with messages, it illustrates digital surveillance concept .

On Friday, September 12, 2025, EU Council members are asked to share their final position on the controversial child sexual abuse (CSAM) scanning bill.

It's been a long ride, started in May 2022, when the EU Commission first unveiled its Child Sexual Abuse Regulation (CSAR) proposal. The goal is ambitious – to make the online environment safer for kids by preventing the sharing of child sexual abuse material. Yet, the proposed system for how to do that, meaning the scanning of private messages, has sparked a strong debate among political ranks and the tech industry alike.

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