PSA: we're aware that Signal is down for some people. This appears to be related to a major AWS outage. Stand by.

So we remain vigilant & deeply grateful to our allies.

For Signal, Chat Control is an existential threat. If we were *forced* to choose between building surveillance into our services or keeping our integrity, we would choose integrity & leave the market. We hope it never comes to this. 7/

The technical consensus is clear: you can't create a backdoor that only lets the "good guys" in. However they're dressed up, these proposals create cybersecurity loopholes that hackers and hostile nations are eagerly waiting to exploit. 6/

The reality is that scanning any content before it is encrypted negates the very purpose of encryption and is a dangerous backdoor. No amount of tinkering or word games can change that inescapable reality. 5/

We must be wary of "new" proposals that allow scanning of "known content" while claiming to protect privacy by proscribing "indiscriminate" surveillance. We must also look out for those that mandate only scanning for “hashed images or videos.” 4/

The war is not over, however. Now we move to the European Council, where the issue is unresolved. We expect closed-door negotiations to engage in rhetorical arbitrage--claiming to support privacy by using word games and bespoke definitions--while in practice undermining it. Tedious and dangerous 3/

Defending privacy isn't easy. Those in power always want more access +more info. It's especially hard when emotionally charged args are used to advance surveillance

️ to those doing the work!

https://social.bau-ha.us/@CCC
https://d-64.social/@d64eV
https://mastodon.social/@chatcontrol
And many others 2/

We're so relieved to see Germany reaffirm its opposition to the dangerous Chat Control proposal--the one that would mandate mass scanning of communications.

Germany's long been a solid champion of privacy, and the news that it was considering backing mass surveillance was alarming. 1/

Germany's close to reversing its opposition to mass surveillance & private message scanning, & backing the Chat Control bill. This could end private comms-& Signal-in the EU.

Time's short and they're counting on obscurity: please let German politicians know how horrifying their reversal would be.