As far as I understand, people using this site to contact their elected officials were instrumental in making lawmakers back down from ChatControl v2.0. Hoping the same will be true this time around.
> The fact that they will keep bringing it back until we have better people in the EU Parliament just means that we have to win more victories.
But these proposals came not from the EU Parliament (who you directly vote for), but from the EU Commission (who you do not). They have since been revived by several presidencies of the Council, who are also highly likely to be immune to your electoral displeasure. The EU Parliament has no ability to initiate legislation.
The EU-critical minority on HN keeps pointing this out only to receive downvotes, while the same old misunderstandings continue. Any democratic link between the EU Citizens and the Commission is effectively homeopathic.
I am glad that the Parliament had rejected these proposals, but remember the saying… you have to be lucky every time.
Each member state nominates a Commissioner candidate, in consultation with the incoming Commission President. Each Commission candidate is interviewed by a Parliamentary committee, and (rarely) they might be rejected. I suppose you could pressure your MEP if they happen to be on the committee...
The MEPs as a group have to approve the whole Commission as a final stage and could reject them... but this has never happened. The closest thing to this would be the Commission of '99 that collectively resigned over corruption.
The proposals apply to “providers” of “hosting services“, of “interpersonal communications service”, and of “software application stores” (you can look up the definitions for yourself in the published texts). It’s hard to see how that would apply to purely P2P systems, except that distributing an app for it via app stores would likely require user age verification.
Flathub, the snap store, gnome software, etc. all technically meet the definitino of software application store.
Makes me wonder (and worry) if they can stretch the definition to apply to standard package repos as well. Are we going to be entering an era where you have to verify your identity & age to apt-get software?
I think that real danger is a very real possibility with legislation like this. Not in the way that you won't be able to buy "unlocked" devices, but that web services and government services just flat out won't be accessible to you if you aren't on a sanctioned device (with the sanctioned spyware).
Think things like requiring play integrity attestation to access banking, or an equivalent service baked into macOS, Windows, iOS. If you aren't on one of those proprietary and spied on OSes, you can't access most of the web.
So technically the hardware will remain relatively open, but they'll make it so you can't interact with the rest of society with it.
That would still be the relatively benign outcome. You can have one device for all the official stuff, and another device for your own software, “free“ OSs and the “free” internet. However, I could see a future where anything that accesses the internet is required to be an iPhone-like clamped down device.
the worst (and the only) way possible: hold authors or distributors of the said software responsible: Order apple and google to remove apps, Order ISPs to block domains that host PWAs, Issue arrest warrants for authors of software that does not or cannot comply.
The EU has been taken over by terrorists and law enforcement does nothing. People behind Chat Controls should be arrested.
These proposals are against German laws and other EU countries. It can be treated as terrorist attack attempt.
It creates psychological and physical harm, indiscriminately for ideological gain. Textbook terrorism, except done by nice people in suits and there is no blood (yet).
The mass import of potential terrorists are the pretext to introduce this panopticon. Quite the play. You push your agenda, by pushing stochastic events that forward it.
Legit question: if this disaster of a legislation passes, what are the alternatives to provide secure messaging / comms when you are inside the EU?
The only 2 options that I can think about are:
- The Dark Web: TOR, I2P (<--- not sure why I2P didn't gain more popularity) or potemntially other alternatives in the same space
- VPN outside the EU and access a secure messaging system via the VPN exit point. This would assume that the system would have E2EE / some kind of at least superficial privacy guarantees.
Am I missing any major category / tech combination?
As far as I understand, people using this site to contact their elected officials were instrumental in making lawmakers back down from ChatControl v2.0. Hoping the same will be true this time around.