With fears rising about the security of online communications, the European Parliament emailed all its staff on 13 February recommending which tools to use.
Interestingly, at a time when European sovereignty is gaining momentum in Brussels, the Parliament’s email advises using only US-based communication tools.
The Parliament’s email, seen by Euractiv, puts its recommendations in a context of US-wide telecommunications infrastructure hacks which were first reported at the end of 2024, but are still ongoing, as well as an alleged “increase in threat” on commercial telecommunications.
To protect personal data and communications, the Parliament encourages staff in the first instance to use solutions that it is paying for: Microsoft’s Teams and Cisco’s Jabber.
If using those tools is not possible, for non-sensitive communication the email recommends the app Signal. It then outlines steps officials should take in order to secure their communications on the app, including using a PIN, turning on a disappearing messages feature, and enabling automatic security updates.
In France, a decree by former Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne in December 2023 ordered all ministers and cabinet members to ditch WhatsApp, Telegram and other communications applications, and use French solutions Olvid or Tchap instead.
The Commission banned TikTok from corporate devices in March 2023 over security concerns, and the European Parliament followed through.
At the same time, the EU has still to tighten its regulation of spyware, which, as reported by Euractiv, are used by European governments to spy on journalists.
