By Foo Yun Chee
BRUSSELS, March 16 (Reuters) – EU countries and lawmakers on Monday failed to agree to an extension of a temporary measure governing how Alphabet’s OGL.O> Google, Meta Platforms and other online platforms tackle child sexual abuse material, leaving a legal vacuum on the issue.
The current system of voluntary detection and removal of online child sexual abuse by companies, which exempts them from strict online privacy rules, has been in place since 2021 and will expire on April 3.
“Regrettably the European Parliament insisted on amending the scope of the interim measure in a way that, in the view of the vast majority of member states, would have made this measure ineffective,” a spokesperson for Cyprus, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency, said.
“Today’s development creates a vacuum.”
Lawmakers last week insisted that the temporary rules should not apply to end-to-end encrypted communications, among other proposed changes.
Europe resorted to a temporary measure after failing to agree on legislation on the issue, which pits advocates of online safety measures against privacy activists worried about surveillance.
The European Commission’s draft rule known as child sexual abuse material (CSAM) has been stuck in a quagmire since it was drawn up in 2022, with both sides criticising key elements.
Big Tech has lobbied against any requirement that would force messaging services, app stores and internet access providers to report and remove known and new images and videos, as well as cases of grooming.
(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
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