With an open letter to all MPS of the National Council, some Austrian and international NGOs want to prevent the introduction of the controversial monitoring of the messenger. The corresponding law must be decided from Wednesday to Friday in the National Council.
The more than 40 signer in addition to data protection organizations such as Epicenter. Works also Greenpeace and the Catholic Action-Filling against the Law. It is a “historic step back for general safety”.
Signator warns of a lack of control
In particular, the lack of independent control is criticized in the letter, because according to the current draft the Ministry of the Interior would “master” itself. Moreover, targeted monitoring of Messenger -Services is technically not possible without attacking the entire device.
As a result, the State itself becomes a hacker, security gaps were deliberately open – with consequences for all users, from critical infrastructures to private households. “In other countries this had already resulted in the fact that hospitals, trains and mobile phone networks were paralyzed.
EU countries have monitored critics, journalists
Journalists, activists, scientists and opposition groups are also particularly threatened. In Spain, for example, the secret service checked the mobile phones of Catalan independence assistants, journalists and even government members.
In Greece, politicians and journalists were systematically followed in the so -called “predatorgate” scandal. In Poland, “Pegasus” was used against nearly 600 people, including opposition and lawyers. “These incidents are exemplary for how quickly the use of such surveillance technologies undermine democratic structures,” says the letter.
Coordination behavior unclear
Messenger Monitoring came in the government program as a requirement of the ÖVP. After the discrepancies of the coalitions, or doubts – especially the Neos had doubts – eventually agreed to a draft law.
It is still unclear whether the government parties are being demolished in the National Council – the Neos -Mandate Stephanie Krisper and Nikolaus Scherak has announced that they want to vote against it. The NGOs hope that the letter, signed by organizations from Turkey, the US and Ukraine, hope to further win from the 183 MPs for their case.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
