2023-06-09 12:37:18
The European justice ministers are meeting today to discuss the establishment of a High Level Expert Group, which will look at how far intelligence services can go in tracking down criminals. There are quite a few snags to setting up such an advisory group, especially when it comes to privacy.
CDA MEP Jeroen Lenaers emphasizes that it is not about establishing a supervisory body. The intention is that the group will work together intensively for a year and come up with recommendations. These should lead to European legislation in the field of effective law enforcement, such as using data to catch criminals.
‘It is becoming increasingly difficult for police and intelligence services to access criminal data’
According to Lenaers, there is great concern in many countries about the phenomenon of ‘going dark’. ‘That all kinds of important technology that we also use – such as encryption and encrypted messages – for our privacy, are also used by criminals,’ says Lenaers. “We use it for good reasons, but criminals are now also hiding behind it. This means that it is becoming increasingly difficult for police and intelligence services to access such data in order to tackle criminals.’
Civil rights
Should intelligence services actually gain access to that encryption and encrypted messages, there may be a violation of civil rights. But above all a dilemma, Lenaers thinks. ‘For good citizens you want to keep the protection intact, but for criminals you want to find a way to break through,’ he explains. “And that’s very difficult.”
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According to the expert group, the starting point will therefore be ‘and-and’. Lenaers: ‘They believe that we should stop pretending that security and privacy can conflict with each other. Ultimately, the intention is to come up with a recommendation that strengthens both.’
Cooperation
Lenaers emphasizes that there will also be intensive cooperation with privacy regulators, experts and organisations. ‘And at the same time we bring security experts, police officers and the Public Prosecution Service to the table in order to formulate a solution,’ he explains. ‘It’s a dilemma. Everyone accepts that. But we can’t do nothing, because otherwise the problem will only get worse.’
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