For decades, the Internet has empowered people to communicate, organise, learn, create businesses, share culture and participate in democracy across borders. Its openness has been one of its greatest strengths. Today, however, that openness is increasingly under threat.
Across the world, governments are responding to concerns about online harms with proposals that risk undermining fundamental rights. Mandatory age verification, device scanning, digital identity requirements: broad surveillance measures and restrictions on access are often presented as simple solutions to complex problems. Yet these approaches frequently come at the expense of privacy, freedom of expression and the open nature of the Internet itself.
As Pirates, we reject the false choice between safety and fundamental rights. We believe it is possible to protect people online without creating systems of mass surveillance or limiting access to information and communication.
The European Pirates is proud to support the Stop Killing the Internet campaign, which brings together organisations, activists, creators and citizens who share our vision of a free and open Internet.
Rather than accepting increasingly intrusive measures as inevitable, the campaign advocates for evidence-based, proportionate and rights-respecting approaches to tackling online harms. It promotes transparency, democratic accountability, better platform governance and policies that address the root causes of problems instead of restricting the rights of everyone.
This aligns closely with the principles the European Pirates has defended for many years. We have consistently opposed indiscriminate surveillance, mandatory upload filters, mass data retention, client-side scanning and other proposals that weaken digital rights in the name of security or safety. We believe that a free society depends on a free Internet.
The challenges facing the Internet are international, and so must be the response. By joining forces with organisations from across the world, we can better defend an Internet that remains secure, open, interoperable and accessible for everyone.
If you share this vision, we encourage you to learn more about the campaign by visiting Stop Killing the Internet. You can also stay informed about new developments and opportunities to get involved by subscribing to the campaign’s newsletter. Together, we can help ensure that the future of the Internet is built on freedom, privacy and democratic values—not surveillance and exclusion.
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