Cybersecurity Policy Report, EU Parliament Moves to Extend CSAM Detection Privacy Exemption, (Mar 13, 2026)

By Jeff Williams

Members of the European Parliament (MEP) voted to extend until Aug. 3, 2027, an existing privacy rule exemption that allows for the detection of child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) that had been scheduled to expire April 3.

The measure was approved 458-103, with 63 abstentions, according to a parliamentary press release, which noted the approval came “so that an agreement on the long-term legal framework to prevent and combat child sexual abuse online can be reached.”

Parliament “is now ready for negotiations with the [European] Council on extending the exemption,” the release said.

MEPs had previously voted to extend the exemption in 2024 (CPR, April 12, 2024).

“This interim derogation, which I support, is a temporary, strictly limited instrument allowing providers to continue voluntary detection measures under specific conditions,” said Birgit Sippel, Parliament’s rapporteur for the measure.

The extension “must uphold end-to-end encryption,” he said. “Reducing the scope of the extension to previously identified and hashed child sexual abuse material and material raised by flaggers is both necessary and justified for a proportionate framework that will withstand judicial scrutiny and provide sustainable protection for children.”

News: InternationalLegislation DataPrivacy