The EU Commission presented a Roadmap on how it intends to ensure that law enforcement has access to citizens' data. EU politicians are seeking capabilities to decrypt private data by 2030. The Roadmap is part of the ProtectEU strategy, first unveiled
in April 2025. It stems from the work of the High-Level Group (HLG) carried on under the so-called Going Dark initiative . The group was tasked, by the EU Council in June 2023, to develop a strategic plan on access to data for effective law enforcement.
Specifically, the group's final report, published in March 2025, referred to end-to-end encryption as the biggest technical challenge to the investigative work of law enforcement agencies, explicitly targeting the use of the best VPN services,
encrypted messaging apps, and similar tools. The EU plan focuses on six key areas:
- Data retention. The EU Commission is expected to carry out an impact assessment with the aim of extending the EU's data retention obligations and reinforcing cooperation between service providers and authorities.
- Interception. Lawmakers seek
to explore measures aimed at improving cross-border cooperation for lawful interception of data by 2027.
- Digital forensics. The goal here is to develop technical solutions that allow authorities to analyze and preserve digital evidence stored on
electronic devices.
- Decryption. Next year, the EU Commission is set to present a Technology Roadmap on encryption to identify and evaluate decrypting solutions. These technologies are expected to equip Europol officers from 2030.
- Standardisation. The Commission is said to be committed to working alongside Europol, industry stakeholders, experts, and law enforcement practitioners to standardize the new approach to internal security.
- AI solutions for law enforcement. Lawmakers also seek to promote the development and deployment of AI tools by 2028. These solutions will enable authorities to lawfully and effectively process large volumes of seized data.
Other articles suggest that the EU is thinking along the lines of key escrow where the authorities mandatorily demand a copy of people's encryptions keys | 
