# The EU’s “Encryption Roadmap” Makes Everyone Less Safe

Source: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/06/eus-encryption-roadmap-makes-everyone-less-safe
Kiwi News: https://news.kiwistand.com/stories/The-EUs-Encryption-Roadmap-Makes-Everyone-Less-Safe?index=0x683f692e26bb31e0873882f6e5ec4b91230a993729479874e11e77ae90d3655687cd7dcb
Submitted by misha on 2025-06-03 UTC, 1 upvote, 0 comments

## Summary

EFF joined more than 80 civil society organizations, companies, and cybersecurity experts in a letter urging the European Commission to change course on its "Technology Roadmap on Encryption," part of the EU's ProtectEU strategy. The letter argues that no technical "lawful access" to end-to-end encrypted messages preserves security and privacy, and that circumvention methods such as client-side scanning create new vulnerabilities. It also calls on EU officials to scrap any roadmap focused on circumvention and to invest instead in stronger, more widespread use of end-to-end encryption.

## Article

EFF has joined more than 80 civil society organizations, companies, and cybersecurity experts in signing a letter urging the European Commission to change course on its recently announced “Technology Roadmap on Encryption.” The roadmap, part of the EU’s ProtectEU strategy, discusses new ways for law enforcement to access encrypted data. That framing is dangerously flawed.

Let’s be clear: there is no technical “lawful access” to end-to-end encrypted messages that preserves security and privacy. Any attempt to circumvent encryption—like client-side scanning—creates new vulnerabilities, threatening the very people governments claim to protect.

This letter is significant in not just its content, but in who signed it. The breadth of the coalition makes one thing clear: civil society and the global technical community overwhelmingly reject the idea that weakening encryption can coexist with respect for fundamental rights.

Strong encryption is a pillar of cybersecurity, protecting everyone: activists, journalists, everyday web users, and critical infrastructure. Undermining it doesn’t just hurt privacy. It makes everyone’s data more vulnerable and weakens the EU’s ability to defend against cybersecurity threats.

EU officials should scrap any roadmap focused on circumvention and instead invest in stronger, more widespread use of end-to-end encryption. Security and human rights aren’t in conflict. They depend on each other.

You can read the full letter here.

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