The issue arose after the ICCL requested documents pertaining to the decision-making behind a proposed regulation aimed at preventing and combating child sexual abuse.

The Commission failed to disclose a list of companies who were consulted about the technical feasibility of detecting child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in end-to-end encrypted communications.

The ICCL filed complaints with the Ombudsman in December 2022. The Ombudsman has now held that this failure to disclose the existence of the list constituted “maladministration”.

Dr Kris Shrishak, senior fellow at ICCL, said: “In light of these concerns, the lack of transparency from the Commission regarding external experts is deeply worrying, more so considering alleged close links between the Commission and lobbyists in the preparation of the regulation.”