A privacy organization has issued a warning about a worldwide scanning scheme that now is under consideration by the European Parliament that would allow every message, photo, or hosted file – anywhere – to be scanned.
And shared, likely with government interests.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation says the plan would be “disastrous for privacy worldwide.”
“We don’t need ‘bugs in our pockets,’” the organization said in its report. “A private and secure internet should be built with privacy and security in mind – not by treating every user like they’re in a criminal lineup.”
The plan, the EFF said, does deal with a legitimate concern: the spread of child abuse material online.
“But abused children need privacy and security as much as anyone. Privacy-protecting technologies, like end-to-end encryption, let both minors and adults reach out for trusted help.”
The organization earlier asked the EU Commission to drop the scheme, and the request was joined by more than 120 other civil society organizations from Europe and around the world.
But the request was rejected.
Now, the EFF explains, “the parliamentary process is moving forward” and the decision is in the hands of members of the European Parliament.
“Young people themselves don’t want police and governments looking at their messages, and they don’t believe it will keep them safe,” the report said, noting a recent survey of thousands of teens in the EU found “a majority of the respondents already use encrypted apps like WhatsApp and Signal, and 80% are uncomfortable with government scanning, even for the purpose of preventing child abuse.”
“If EU governments vote to broadly scan user messages, it will harm whistleblowers, activists, journalists, labor unions, and oppressed groups everywhere. It will be a dangerous precedent for mass surveillance worldwide.”
At a special online site, Stop Scanning Me, set up to oppose the idea, there was the warning, “Your private chats will be scanned. You won’t able to share anything remotely intimate without the risk of your messages, photos and videos ending up in the hands of some governmental institution.”
Further, it pointed out that “Technology is known to fail. And as a result, you may be accused of being a (child) sexual offender without having done anything wrong.”
It concluded, “We all agree: child sexual abuse is a horrendous act.”
But it noted, “As a society, we shouldn’t waste our effort to tackle this issue on actions that are proven to be ineffective and harmful.”
This article was originally published by the WND News Center.
This post originally appeared on WND News Center.