Chat Control: encrypted chats stay out — for now

Parliament amends the scanning regime to exclude WhatsApp-style encrypted apps.

On 9 July the European Parliament failed to reject the revived voluntary message-scanning regime outright (314 votes to reject; 360 were needed) — but adopted an amendment that keeps end-to-end encrypted apps like WhatsApp and Signal out of its scope. The permanent “Chat Control” law (the CSA Regulation) is still being negotiated separately, and its most contested piece — mandatory detection orders — remains unresolved.

For youNo EU law currently forces apps to scan your private messages, and Parliament just drew a line around encryption. The fight over the permanent law continues in autumn.

Next: The Council has roughly three months to accept the encryption carve-out or trigger conciliation.

Verified against the sources above on 18 July 2026. Plain-language summary — not the legal text and not legal advice.