Debate: Preventing the dissemination of terrorist content online
Date: WEDNESDAY, 28 APRIL 2021
Speaker: Ylva Johansson
Language: EN

With this regulation, we take European action against terrorist activities online: action that is quick, cross—border and compulsory. Quick: Member States will be able to order internet providers to take down terrorist content within the hour. Cross-border: Member States will be able to issue orders to take down terrorist content hosted by any service provider anywhere in the European Union. Compulsory: providers must carry out these demands and pay fines if they don’t. Proportionate fines: small companies must not fall victim to terrorists abusing their systems. I’m sure you all remember the Christchurch attacks: 60 minutes and 55 seconds of mass murder broadcast live to the world. Some platforms still have copies of that attack online. What’s worse, animated versions aimed at children keep appearing on videogaming platforms. That too can soon be taken down in the whole of Europe within the hour. As we speak, jihadi groups are calling for attacks online: calling on followers to exploit political unrest during the pandemic, to kill people and damage property. That too, soon, can be taken down in the whole of Europe within the hour. With this regulation, we will strike a blow against terrorists. Without online manuals to tell you how, it’s harder to make bombs. Without flashy propaganda videos, it’s harder to poison the minds of young people. Without streaming attacks online, it’s harder to inspire copycat attacks. It’s difficult to measure: people are not radicalised, bombs not made, attacks not carried out. We may never be able to count how many, but this regulation will save lives, and we can be proud of this result. This regulation strikes a major blow against terrorists, but it’s only one of many steps in the fight against terrorism, offline and online. In December 2020, I launched our counterterrorism agenda. Besides fighting terrorists online, we will, among other things, boost European police cooperation and information exchange, make it more difficult for foreign fighters to enter the European Union undetected, protect people in public spaces like churches, mosques, synagogues, stadiums and public transport. This regulation upholds our values and fundamental rights by fighting terrorists who attack our freedoms and our democracies, by putting safeguards in place, and by limiting removal of content to what is clearly illegal. We will take down terrorist content and uphold freedom of expression. I would like to warmly thank the rapporteur, Patryk Jaki, and also all the shadow rapporteurs for these results. A lot of work has gone into this. I would like to thank the Parliament for your support. Thank you for making this regulation a reality, and thank you for the very good cooperation. As a society, we are facing the enormous challenge of digital change, which fundamentally affects the way we live and the way we work. It affects our security and our privacy. We must face this challenge as law—makers and as a union. In December, the Commission launched the Digital Services Act to foster online markets and to protect fundamental rights online. We must also give law enforcement the right rules and tools to fight crime and terrorism in the digital age. It’s up to us now to find agreements on child sexual abuse online, our short—term and future long-term proposals on detecting and reporting child sexual exploitation online, and to find agreements on e—evidence   To fight crime and terrorism, law enforcement needs timely access to cross—border evidence. To find agreement on data retention, we need to look at possibilities in line with EU law so that digital evidence of crimes or leads to investigations do not accidentally disappear. To find agreement on encryption, police must be able to gain effective access to encrypted electronic evidence when they are granted the legal authorisation to do so. To make agreements on artificial intelligence, law enforcement should use the full potential of AI to find missing children and very dangerous criminals, to prevent terrorist attacks and to respond to the malicious use of technology by criminals. All of these policies are as sensitive as they are important. The successful negotiating result achieved on this file – the terrorist content online – gives me the confidence that we will also find agreement on the Commission’s other proposals on digital law enforcement. So let this result inspire us together to make Europe safe for everyone.