When: Thursday, September 11, 2025 – 19:00 EEST (Cyprus time)
Where: https://calls.disroot.org/ChatControlCyBriefing
Join us on 11 September, 19:00 EEST for a Briefing Session to unpack the EU’s proposed Chat Control Regulation–formally known as the Regulation to Prevent and Combat Child Sexual Abuse (CSAR), with an eye to both protecting children and preserving digital privacy. This session aims to deliver technical clarity, assess legal implications, and foster open, evidence-driven dialogue to help guide policymakers toward balanced, rights-respecting solutions.
Why This Matters: Balancing Child Protection & Digital Rights
The EU’s proposed Chat Control Regulation (CSAR) seeks to combat online child sexual abuse through mandatory detection and reporting requirements. It raises urgent questions about privacy, encryption, child protection, and proportionality.
What is the Chat Control Regulation?
Goal: Prevent child sexual abuse material (CSAM) online.
Mechanism: Mandates detection, reporting, and removal of CSAM—potentially even in encrypted services via client-side scanning, where user content is analyzed before encryption, circumventing end-to-end security.
Latest Timeline & Stakes
14 October 2025: Earliest expected Council vote.
12 September 2025: EU Member States finalize positions in Council working groups.
Call for Participation
We believe that good policy emerges from inclusive dialogue. This session is not only for experts, but also for:
- Policymakers and public servants shaping Cyprus’ stance in the EU
- Parents and educators concerned about children’s safety online
- Technologists and entrepreneurs invested in secure digital infrastructures
- Civil society groups defending fundamental rights
We encourage participants to bring questions, concerns, and insights, so that together we can map the opportunities and risks and help policymakers in Cyprus make well-informed decisions.
Speakers
Contact us to suggest additional speakers on this topic.
Theodotos Andreou
Theodotos Andreou is a seasoned system administrator (Collabora, Cyprus University of Technology) and a committed advocate for digital rights and open-source software, he is a founding member of both Ubuntucy and the Cyprus FOSS Community (ΕΛ/ΛΑΚ Cyprus), playing a pivotal role in promoting free and open-source projects within the Cypriot tech ecosystem.
Through his blog “Mouflons and Penguins”, Andreou shares technical insights, personal experiences, and reflections on digital rights, exploring digital vulnerabilities and privacy concerns.
archive.theo-andreou.org
Andreas Shialarou: “The EU is preparing to destroy digital privacy – and Cyprus supports it”
Andreas Shialaros is a Cyprus-based lawyer who deals with digital rights and data protection issues among other areas
Marios Isaakidis: “Understanding the technical side of ChatControl legislation”
Marios develops technologies, mechanisms and policies that establish our freedoms in the Information Age. He serves as director at infotropic.tech specializing in Internet freedom, privacy engineering, protocol design and blockchain applications.
Code https://github.com/misaakidis
Publications https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=6t9PJ2sAAAAJ
Chrystalleni Loizidou (facilitator)
Chrystalleni Loizidou is a cultural theorist and public policy researcher specialising in Education, Technology, and Community. She serves as Regional Representative for the Next Generation Internet (NGI0) initiative. NGI0 is an initiative funded by the European Commission and stewarded by NLnet to support open-source projects that strengthen the internet as a public good, focusing on privacy, security, accessibility, and digital sovereignty.
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References
Andreas Shialaros. (2025, August 24). The EU is preparing to destroy digital privacy – and Cyprus supports it. Cyprus Mail. https://cyprus-mail.com/2025/08/24/the-eu-is-preparing-to-destroy-digital-privacy-and-cyprus-supports-it
CSA Regulation Document Pool—European Digital Rights (EDRi). (n.d.). Retrieved 29 August 2025, from https://edri.org/our-work/csa-regulation-document-pool/
Denmark Revives EU ‘Chat Control’ Proposal for Encrypted Message Scanning. (n.d.). London Daily. Retrieved 27 August 2025, from https://londondaily.com/denmark-revives-eu-chat-control-proposal-for-encrypted-message-scanning
EU Reconsiders ‘Chat Control’ as Denmark Reintroduces Controversial Encryption Scanning Bill—Https://eutoday.net. (2025, July 9). https://eutoday.net/eu-reconsiders-chat-control/
Fight Chat Control—Protect Digital Privacy in the EU. (n.d.). Retrieved 29 August 2025, from https://fightchatcontrol.eu/
‘Fighting crime blindfolded’: Europe is coming after encryption. (2025, April 23). POLITICO. https://www.politico.eu/article/encryption-crime-denmark-peter-hummelgaard-europe-privacy/
Open Letter for MEPs [GR]. (n.d.). Retrieved 29 August 2025, from https://cryptpad.fr/pad/
Regulation to Prevent and Combat Child Sexual Abuse. (2025). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Regulation_to_Prevent_and_Combat_Child_Sexual_Abuse&oldid=1308419934
Voge, C. (2025, May 26). Joint Letter on the European Internal Security Strategy (ProtectEU). Global Encryption Coalition. https://www.globalencryption.org/2025/05/joint-letter-on-the-european-internal-security-strategy-protecteu/
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