Europe’s police forces united against encrypted messaging: ‘It will prevent us from investigating the most serious crimes’

Brussels – Europol and national police forces across the European Union are speaking out against end-to-end encryption, which is present in many messaging platforms, because they fear that extensive privacy protections allow criminals to operate freely.

In a joint statement released Sunday, April 21, after a meeting in London on April 18 to which the heads of all EU police forces were invited, they criticized the strict privacy measures that tech companies like Meta are implementing for their messaging services. End-to-end encryption essentially prevents anyone outside the conversation from reading texts, including platforms.

“The privacy measures currently being implemented, such as end-to-end encryption, will prevent technology companies from seeing any crime occurring on their platforms,” the European police chiefs say. They will also prevent law enforcement from obtaining and using this evidence in investigations to prevent and prosecute the most serious crimes, such as child sexual abuse, human trafficking, drug smuggling, murder, economic crime and terrorism offenses.”

“We will no longer be able to ensure public safety,” they state alarmed. “Never before have our societies tolerated spaces that elude law enforcement, allowing criminals to communicate safely and child abuse to thrive,” the memo adds.

According to Europol and other law enforcement agencies, “technology companies have a social responsibility to develop a safer environment in which law enforcement and justice can do their work.”

Catherine De Bolle, executive director of Europol, explained in a note that “our homes are becoming more dangerous than our streets as crime is moving online. To keep our society and people safe, we need this digital environment to be protected.” According to the Belgian policewoman, “technology companies have a social responsibility to develop a safer environment in which law enforcement and justice can do their work. If police lose the ability to collect evidence, our society will not be able to protect people from becoming victims of crime.”