BRUSSELS ― The European Commission defended Ursula von der Leyen’s use of disappearing messages on her phone — a feature that’s erasing some of the EU’s most politically sensitive communications.
“The messages [of Commission President von der Leyen] are auto-deleted after a while, just for space reasons,” Commission spokesperson Olof Gill said Wednesday. “Otherwise, the phone would go on fire.”
He was answering a question from reporters in reference to a text message from French President Emmanuel Macron urging von der Leyen to block the EU-Mercosur trade deal, first reported by POLITICO in 2024. The European Ombudsman announced this week it has launched a probe into the exchange.According to the Commission, von der Leyen was simply following internal rules.
The use of disappearing messages is recommended in Commission guidance called “Checklist to Make Your Signal Safer,” from 2022.
“On the one hand, it reduces the risk of leaks and security breaches, which is of course an important factor,” Commission spokesperson Balazs Ujvari said. “And also, it’s a question of space on the phone — so, effective use of a mobile device.”
“The president has been complying with these internal guidelines and is using the disappearing message feature, which explains why we could not retrieve any such SMSs.”
He added: “SMSs may have to be registered under certain circumstances — for example, if there is a need to follow up, if there’s an administrative or legal impact.”
In the case of Macron’s message, the Commission concluded that it didn’t meet that threshold. That decision was made by von der Leyen’s powerful head of cabinet, Bjoern Seibert.
“He was one of the actors taking part in this discussion,” Ujvari said. “The President assessed the SMS with her Head of Cabinet and relevant services within the Commission.”
This isn’t the first time von der Leyen’s phone habits have raised eyebrows. Her text exchanges with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla over Covid vaccine contracts were never archived — prompting an ongoing Ombudsman investigation dubbed “Pfizergate.”
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