In August, a 30-year-old developer from Aalborg, identified only as Joachim, built a platform called Fight Chat Control to oppose a proposed European Union regulation aimed at tackling the spread of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) online. The EU bill seeks to give law enforcement agencies new tools to identify and remove illegal content, but critics argue it would compromise encrypted communication and pave the way for mass surveillance.
Joachim’s website allows visitors to automatically generate and send emails to European officials expressing concerns about the proposal. What began as a weekend project has now evolved into a continent-wide campaign, with members of the European Parliament and national representatives receiving hundreds of emails daily. Some offices in Brussels have even reported difficulties managing the flood of messages, which has disrupted regular communication with advocacy groups and policymakers.
The campaign’s influence has extended beyond Brussels. In Denmark, a petition supported by Fight Chat Control gained more than 50,000 signatures, qualifying it for parliamentary discussion. Similar debates have surfaced across Europe, with lawmakers in countries such as Ireland and Poland referencing the controversy in national assemblies. Joachim said his website has drawn over 2.5 million visitors, though he declined to disclose his full name or employer to avoid associating his workplace with the initiative.
While privacy advocates applaud the campaign for sparking public awareness, others believe the mass email tactic undermines productive dialogue. Some lawmakers described the influx of identical messages as “one-sided communication,” limiting space for constructive debate. Child rights organisations, including Eurochild, have also voiced frustration, saying their outreach to officials has been drowned out by the surge of citizen emails.
Meanwhile, the European Union continues to deliberate the CSAM regulation. The European Commission first proposed the law in 2022, arguing that stronger detection measures are vital as online privacy technologies expand and artificial intelligence generates increasingly realistic harmful content. Denmark, which currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU Council, has introduced a revised version of the bill and hopes to secure support at an upcoming ministerial meeting in Luxembourg.
Danish Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard maintains that the new draft is more balanced than the initial proposal, stating that content scanning would only be used as a last resort. However, several EU member states remain cautious, citing privacy concerns and the potential misuse of surveillance powers.
As European nations prepare to vote, the controversy continues to reflect a broader struggle: finding a balance between protecting children from online exploitation and safeguarding citizens’ right to digital privacy.
