Some 500 journalists have called on members of the European Parliament since September 14 to introduce an absolute ban on surveillance of the press through spyware in the upcoming European Media Freedom Act.
Spyware, which secretly takes over electronic devices without being detected, puts journalists around the world at risk of increased harassment and violence and sometimes precedes imprisonment.
In the letter, journalists living in the European Union detail how such intrusive surveillance threatens their ability to work and their rights to privacy and their sources’ confidentiality.
Read the full letter below.
Also read more about the chilling impact spyware has had on press freedom in CPJ’s special report “Zero-Click Spyware: Enemy of the Press.”
Editor’s note: The first paragraph and the letter have been updated to reflect the number of signatories on September 22, 2023.