Apple, Google Seek Changes to Canada’s Online Safety Bill Over Encryption Concerns

Bill C-22, introduced by Canada’s governing Liberal Party and currently under debate in the House of Commons, is designed to strengthen law enforcement access to digital information in cases involving national security and criminal investigations. Per Reuters, the legislation resembles laws previously enacted in Britain and Australia that seek to give authorities greater access to encrypted communications and data.

Canadian officials have argued the measure would help investigators identify threats sooner and respond more rapidly. End-to-end encryption prevents anyone — including technology companies and law enforcement agencies — from accessing data without the proper decryption key.

Although the proposed legislation does not explicitly require companies to break encryption, major technology firms including Apple, Google and Meta Platforms have publicly opposed the bill. According to Reuters, the companies argue the legislation could create a framework in which they might receive undisclosed government orders requiring them to build backdoors into their products or services while being barred from informing users or the public.

Read more: Apple Joins Google in Opposing EU AI Access Proposal

Representatives from Apple and Google raised those concerns during testimony Tuesday before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security. Both companies called for amendments that would clearly protect encryption and require judicial oversight for any government requests involving encrypted systems.

“Secret orders are out of step with other democratic countries and would severely restrict companies’ ability to be transparent with users about how their data is protected,” said Jeanette Patell, Google’s director for government affairs and public policy in Canada.

The debate comes after Apple previously faced similar pressure in Britain. Per Reuters, the company last year received a secret order from UK authorities seeking access to encrypted data, prompting Apple to remove encrypted cloud backup features from the country.

During Tuesday’s committee hearing, Conservative lawmaker Frank Caputo of British Columbia asked Apple executive Erik Neuenschwander whether the company would consider leaving Canada if it were required to create a backdoor into its devices.

“I can’t speculate what would happen in that situation,” Neuenschwander said. “Through this engagement and the continued dialogue, we hope to have positive amendments made to the bill.”

Source: Reuters