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EU Confidential

Pornography, children and privacy: Europe's digital dilemma

EU Confidential

POLITICO

Politics, News Commentary, News

4.4 • 175 Ratings

🗓️ 7 November 2025

⏱️ 33 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Europe faces a growing dilemma: how to protect children online without breaking digital privacy for everyone.  A new report from the Internet Watch Foundation found that 62 percent of all child sexual abuse material discovered online last year was hosted on EU servers. It’s a shocking statistic that has left Brussels locked in a heated debate over how far new regulations should go — and whether scanning encrypted messages could be justified, even at the cost of privacy and the risk of mass surveillance.  Host Sarah Wheaton is joined by POLITICO’s Sam Clark, Eliza Gkritsi and Océane Herrero to unpack Europe’s child safety regulations — and the balance between protecting kids, protecting privacy and policing platforms. The conversation also touches on the latest controversy out of France, involving Shein — the fast-fashion giant caught selling childlike sex dolls online.  Then, from Europe’s digital dilemmas to Albania’s digital experiment: Gordon Repinski, host of POLITICO's Berlin Playbook podcast, sits down with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, who has appointed the world’s first artificial intelligence minister — a virtual woman named Diella. Rama explains why he believes Diella could help fight corruption, cut bureaucracy and speed up Albania’s path toward EU membership.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Sean has had some good ideas over the years, but using Canva was a really good one.

0:08.0

Sean designed some social posts to promote his friend's car boot sale.

0:13.0

They looked good, really, really good.

0:17.0

Next thing he knows, someone came and bought the loft, including the car.

0:24.5

Now Sean doesn't know how he's going to get home.

0:28.0

Thanks, Canva.

0:30.0

If you're in traffic right now, look around. You'll see empty car seats.

0:33.7

Nobody loves sitting in traffic.

0:35.4

We don't.

0:36.1

And neither do ESSO.

0:37.3

Every filled passenger seat in this jam could mean one less car on the road.

0:41.4

And ESSO want to help with that.

0:43.2

Carpooling could mean less traffic.

0:45.6

Split fuel bills.

0:46.7

And new friends.

0:47.5

Oh, we're friends.

0:48.2

I added you on social media.

0:49.9

We don't have social media. We're bubbleheads.

0:52.1

Oh, I've got social media.

0:53.6

More journeys made together. That's thoughtful driving.

0:57.6

S.O.com.uk.

1:00.5

Heads up. I'm going to kick things off today with something pretty disturbing.

...

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