Apple Opposes Canadian Bill That Could Force Encryption Backdoors

Apple and Meta are publicly opposing a new Canadian bill that they say could force tech companies to break encryption or build backdoors into their products. The proposal, known as Bill C-22, would expand the investigative tools available to Canadian law enforcement for accessing digital information tied to criminal investigations. Although it does not specifically mention encryption, Apple argues that the proposal’s access powers could still be used to compel companies to weaken encrypted services.

In a statement to Reuters, Apple said that at a time of rising and pervasive threats from malicious actors seeking access to user information, Bill C-22 as drafted would undermine its ability to offer the powerful privacy and security features users expect from the company. The statement continued that this legislation could allow the Canadian government to force companies to break encryption by inserting backdoors into their products, something Apple will never do.

Meta’s executives echoed Apple’s concerns in prepared testimony. They said that as drafted, the bill could require companies like Meta to build or maintain capabilities that break, weaken, or circumvent encryption or other zero-knowledge security architectures, and force providers to install government spyware directly on their systems.

The Canadian bill comes after Apple last year got into a high-profile dispute with the British government. That dispute followed a UK order forcing companies to put backdoors in their encryption systems. Apple responded by stopping the offering of Advanced Data Protection to new users in the country, while existing users would eventually be required to disable it. The British government reportedly ended up backing down under pressure from the US.

At the time, Apple made it clear that it had never and would never build a backdoor or master key to any of its products or services. The public spat rekindled a debate over government access to encrypted Apple user data that was reminiscent of the San Bernardino case, when the FBI made a similar request before dropping it after finding another way into the iPhone without Apple’s help.

Bill C-22 is still being debated in the House of Commons. It has been proposed by Canada’s ruling Liberal Party, which gained a parliamentary majority last month.