A coalition of nearly 250 child rights organizations warns that the European Union's failure to extend the ePrivacy derogation is jeopardizing global child protection from online abuse. The derogation, which expired April 3rd, previously allowed technology companies to voluntarily detect and remove child sexual abuse material (CSAM) using tools like hash-matching. Google, Meta, Microsoft, and Snap reaffirm their commitment to this critical work, stating they will continue voluntary actions despite the legal uncertainty. This lapse threatens the safety of children worldwide and undermines platforms' efforts to protect victims and maintain service integrity.

The EU institutions are now negotiating an urgent interim solution and a durable framework to restore legal certainty.