The messages of Ursula von der Leyen disappear automatically. Explanations of the European Commission: “Otherwise, the phone would take fire”
The European Commission offered explanations after finding out that the messages on the phone Von Der Leyen automatically disappear. The controversy was fueled by the disappearance of an SMS sent by Emmanuel Macron, in which the President of France asked him to block the EU-Mercosur commercial agreement.
The messages on the phone of Ursula von der Leyen automatically disappear Photo: X
The spokesman of the European Commission, Olof Gill, confirmed on Wednesday that the messages of the president of the institution are automatically deleted. “The messages [președintei Comisiei] are automatically deleted after a whileonly for reasons of space. Otherwise the phone would take fire“, He said, quoted by Politico.
The explanations come after finding out that an SMS sent in 2024 by Emmanuel Macron to Ursula von der Leyen no longer exists. In that message, the French leader asked him to block the EU-Mercosur agreement. The absence of the document led to the opening of an investigation by the European Ombudsman.
Internal rules and signal app
The Commission said that Ursula von der Leyen respects the internal rules regarding the use of the Signal application, which recommends the use of temporary messages. “On the one hand, it reduces the risk of leaks and security breaches, and on the other hand it is about the space on the phone – an efficient use of the device”, Another spokesman, Balazs Ujvari, explained.
In a guide published in 2022, entitled “Checklist to make your signal Safer”, the European Commission recommends officials to use the disappearing messages. According to the institution, SMS should only be archived when they have an administrative or legal impact, which would not have been applied in the case of the message sent by Macron. The decision not to have the archive was taken by Ursula von der Leyen together with his cabinet boss, Bjoern Sebert.
Controversial precedents
It is not for the first time that the digital practices of Ursula von der Leyen raises question marks. During the Covid-19 Pandemic, his exchanges of messages with the Pfizer CEO, Albert Bourla, related to vaccine contracts, were not archived. The lack of those documents has initiated another investigation of the European Ombudsman, known as “pfizergate”.
