The European Parliament has approved an emergency procedure to re-examine controversial temporary rules that have earned the unflattering nickname "chat control" within the crypto community and among human rights advocates. The issue concerns the extension of measures allowing authorities to mass-scan citizens' encrypted messages in messengers. A new vote on this matter is scheduled for July 9.
The decision to apply the accelerated procedure was made by a narrow margin: 331 MEPs voted in favor, 304 against, and 11 abstained. It is important to understand that successfully rejecting or amending the proposal will require an absolute majority of 361 votes. Thus, the current balance of power leaves the initiators with an extremely narrow window for maneuvering.
From my perspective, this step demonstrates Brussels' growing political will to tighten control over digital communications, despite harsh criticism from the industry and cybersecurity experts. For the cryptocurrency sector, where privacy and decentralization are fundamental principles, such regulatory initiatives pose a direct threat. If "chat control" is ultimately approved, we may see increased pressure on developers of private wallets, DeFi protocols, and services using end-to-end encryption. The market should be prepared for regulators to next target tools that ensure transaction anonymity.