EU Parliament Passes Bill Requiring Smart Contracts to Include a Kill Switch

The European Parliament voted to pass the "Data Act", which requires smart contracts to have access control and protection of commercial secrets, as well as stop or reset functions. 500 EU lawmakers voted in favor of the bill, 23 against and 110 did not vote. The vote empowers Chief Lawmaker del Castillo Vera and other lawmakers to negotiate with EU member state governments to hammer out the final version of the law. Not everyone agrees with the bill, with Schrepel, an expert on blockchain legal issues, arguing that the legal text is unclear about who has to hit the kill switch on a smart contract in practice, and it undermines the fundamental principle that automated programs cannot be changed by anyone.