The European Parliament’s Civil Liberties (LIBE) Committee has voted to advance a controversial proposal expanding the mandate of Europol, the EU’s law enforcement agency, to include more substantial processing of biometric data. The committee approved the package on November 5 with a 59-10 vote, with 4 abstentions, sending it to a full plenary vote later this month.
Ostensibly part of the “Facilitators Package,” the regulation’s stated goal is to strengthen Europol‘s role in combating migrant smuggling and human trafficking. It would expand data-sharing between national governments and Europol and authorize “more substantial processing of biometric data,” including facial recognition, while also enhancing data-sharing with non-EU countries.
The vote has been met with fierce opposition from a coalition of civil society groups, including Access Now and European Digital Rights (EDRi), who decry the move as a “Trojan horse” for mass surveillance. Caterina Rodelli, EU Policy Analyst at Access Now, stated that the committee has “greenlighted the European Commission’s long-term plan to turn Europe into a digital police state”. Critics warn the expanded powers will lead to “mass surveillance,” racial profiling, and the criminalization of migrants.
Adding to the controversy, the proposal was passed without an accompanying impact assessment, a move that violates the European Commission’s own “Better Regulation” guidelines. This lack of scrutiny is a key concern for privacy advocates, who argue the reform “legitimises the agency’s unaccountable and opaque data practices” and creates a “data black hole”.
This development exposes a deep contradiction in EU policy. While the EU publicly champions the user-centric, privacy-first EUDI Wallet, it is simultaneously using its law enforcement arm to build a pan-European biometric surveillance apparatus. The decision to bypass a formal impact assessment suggests that, in the conflict between security and privacy, the security mandate is now proceeding outside of established legal and oversight frameworks.
The controversy adds to Europol’s ongoing challenges with security and public trust. Earlier this year, concerns were raised by the agency itself about vulnerabilities in biometric authentication systems, particularly AI-generated deepfakes and synthetic fingerprints. In 2024, sensitive Europol data was reportedly sold on dark web forums, raising questions about the agency’s ability to secure the expanded biometric databases it now seeks to manage.
Sources: The Record, CADE, EDRi
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By Cass Kennedy
