Preventing the dissemination of terrorist content online

The EESC welcomes the Commission proposal on preventing the dissemination of terrorist content online, while calling for the indeterminate legal concepts such as "terrorist information, terrorist acts, terrorist groups or advocacy of terrorism" to be defined as precisely as possible. The EESC highlights the need to assess the effects of the application of this proposal on SMEs, as well as to consider transition arrangements facilitating their adaptation and a level playing field.

Key points

The EESC:

• welcomes the Commission proposal on preventing the dissemination of terrorist content online, as it seeks greater security for EU inhabitants;
• reiterates the importance of the freedom of expression, freedom of access to information and communication, and the confidentiality of communications;
• finds that the regulatory measures proposed to protect the internet and safeguard the population in general must be strictly governed by law;
• emphasises that internet users must be clearly reminded of the national rules on the production of terrorist content;
• calls for the right to appeal against the administrative decision to be guaranteed with a clear explanation of this right and online tools for its exercise;
• calls for the indeterminate legal concepts such as "terrorist information, terrorist acts, terrorist groups or advocacy of terrorism" to be defined as precisely as possible;
• considers crucial the intervention of a human as mediator and intermediary in assessing online content, while recognising that automated detection (automated parameters, algorithms, search engines, etc.) is very useful;
• warns against censorship or self-imposed censorship on the Internet;
• believes that the measures proposed should help to boost trust in the internet and thus ensure the economic development of this sector;
• highlights the need to assess the effects of the application of this proposal on SMEs, as well as to consider transition arrangements facilitating their adaptation and a level playing field.