EU countries & Chat Control: who's fighting back
the Chat Control vote was 389 to 126. that's not uniform — some countries voted overwhelmingly yes, others mostly no. knowing where your country stands helps you target your political action.
here's the breakdown. i'm focusing on the largest EU countries and the ones with the most interesting politics around this issue.
germany — the mess
vote: split. CDU/CSU overwhelmingly yes, SPD mostly yes, Greens and FDP mostly no, AfD split.
the situation: germany is the most frustrating country on this list. the CDU/CSU — the party that claims to be about "freedom" and "less government" — voted for mass surveillance. the SPD — the party that claims to be about "workers' rights" — also voted yes. only the Greens and parts of the FDP voted no.
why it matters: germany is the largest EU country. if german MEPs had voted no as a bloc, Chat Control might have failed. instead, the CDU/CSU's "think of the children" rhetoric won out.
what's happening now: the german digital rights organization Digitale Gesellschaft is organizing opposition. the Chaos Computer Club (CCC) has published detailed technical critiques. but political pressure is weak because the coalition government is divided.
what you can do:
- contact your CDU/CSU MEP and ask why they voted for mass surveillance
- support the CCC and Digitale Gesellschaft
- the next german federal election is a chance to make this a voting issue
- check abgeordnetenwatch.de to track your representatives
france — the surveillance state
vote: overwhelmingly yes. Renaissance (Macron's party) was the strongest supporter.
the situation: france has been the EU's biggest surveillance advocate since the Bataclan attacks in 2015. they already have extensive domestic surveillance laws. Chat Control is just the EU-level version of what france already does domestically.
why it matters: france, along with germany, drives EU legislation. when france and germany agree, the rest of the EU usually follows.
what's happening now: La Quadrature du Net (french digital rights org) is fighting this in courts. they've had some success challenging french surveillance laws at the EU Court of Justice. but politically, there's little opposition — even the left-wing parties are split.
what you can do:
- support La Quadrature du Net
- contact your MEP (use votewatch.eu)
- if you're in france, this is an uphill battle. the surveillance culture is deeply embedded.
netherlands — the surprising resistance
vote: mostly no. D66 and most smaller parties voted no. VVD voted yes.
the situation: the netherlands has historically been one of the more privacy-friendly EU countries. the vote reflected that — most dutch MEPs voted against Chat Control.
why it matters: the netherlands is a key swing country. if more countries voted like the netherlands, Chat Control would have failed.
what's happening now: Bits of Freedom (dutch digital rights org) is actively lobbying against Chat Control 1.2. the dutch parliament has passed motions expressing concern about the regulation's impact on encryption.
what you can do:
- support Bits of Freedom
- the dutch political landscape is fragmented — multiple parties are sympathetic to privacy arguments
- contact your MEP and thank them if they voted no
sweden — the Mullvad country
vote: split across parties. the center-right voted yes, the left and greens voted no.
the situation: sweden is interesting because it's home to Mullvad (one of the best privacy VPNs) and has strong privacy traditions. but the current center-right government has been more supportive of law enforcement powers.
why it matters: sweden's 2016 court ruling struck down mandatory data retention. this precedent is important for legal challenges to Chat Control.
what's happening now: the swedish digital rights community is relatively small but active. the Pirate Party (yes, it still exists in sweden) is the most vocal opponent.
what you can do:
- support the swedish Pirate Party's privacy campaigns
- contact your MEP
spain — quietly supportive
vote: mostly yes. both the center-left PSOE and center-right PP voted yes.
the situation: spain has its own domestic surveillance expansion happening in parallel. the government has been pushing for more law enforcement access to digital communications.
what you can do:
- Xnet is the main spanish digital rights organization
- contact your MEP
italy — the right-wing yes
vote: mostly yes. Fratelli d'Italia (Meloni's party) voted yes. the opposition was split.
the situation: italy's right-wing government supports surveillance expansion. the opposition parties are fragmented on this issue.
what you can do:
- contact your MEP through votewatch.eu
- italian digital rights activism is relatively weak compared to germany or the netherlands
ireland — the tech hub paradox
vote: mostly yes.
the situation: ireland hosts the EU headquarters of most US tech companies (Google, Meta, Apple, etc.). you'd think ireland would oppose regulation that burdens these companies. but ireland has been supportive of Chat Control — possibly because the tech companies themselves are preparing to comply rather than fight.
what you can do:
- contact your MEP
- the irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has been active on this issue
countries that mostly voted no
these countries' MEPs mostly opposed Chat Control:
- luxembourg — strong privacy tradition, home to some EU institutions
- cyprus — small country, mostly no votes
- slovenia — mixed but leaning no
- estonia — despite being very digital, voted mostly no (privacy-conscious culture)
countries that overwhelmingly voted yes
- poland — PiS and Civic Platform both voted yes
- romania — almost unanimously yes
- hungary — Fidesz voted yes (unsurprisingly)
- bulgaria — overwhelmingly yes
- greece — mostly yes
the numbers
| country | yes votes | no votes | abstain |
|---|---|---|---|
| germany | 52 | 21 | 3 |
| france | 62 | 12 | 5 |
| italy | 47 | 18 | 4 |
| spain | 38 | 12 | 3 |
| netherlands | 10 | 19 | 1 |
| poland | 37 | 9 | 3 |
| sweden | 12 | 10 | 1 |
| ireland | 10 | 3 | 0 |
(approximate numbers based on party-level voting records — individual MEP votes may differ)
what actually works politically
from watching this unfold for two years, here's what actually moves the needle:
1. constituent contact. MEPs track how many emails they get about each issue. if they get 500 emails about Chat Control and 5 emails about fishing quotas, Chat Control moves up their priority list. it's not about persuading them — it's about showing them voters care.
2. civil society organizations. groups like EDRi (European Digital Rights), the CCC, Bits of Freedom, and La Quadrature du Net provide the technical expertise and coordination that individual citizens can't. support them financially.
3. technical community pressure. when security researchers, cryptographers, and developers speak up, it carries weight. the open letter signed by 400+ security researchers opposing client-side scanning was one of the most effective pieces of advocacy.
4. media coverage. most people have never heard of Chat Control. every article, every social media post, every conversation that raises awareness helps.
find your MEP
the single most useful thing you can do right now:
- go to votewatch.eu
- search for your country
- find your MEPs
- check how they voted on Chat Control
- send them an email — short, specific, and personal
if they voted yes: explain why you disagree. mention encryption, false positives, and the precedent. if they voted no: thank them and ask them to oppose Chat Control 1.2.
last updated: july 2026