Apple warns of Canadian bill that could weaken encryption

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. Here are the details.

New country, old problem

Last year, Apple had a high-profile dispute with the British government after the UK issued an order requiring companies to install backdoors in their encryption systems.

This prompted Apple to stop offering advanced data protection to new users in the country, while existing users would eventually have to turn it off. The British government would have ended up backing down under pressure from the United States.

At the time, Apple made it clear that it had never and would never “build a backdoor or master key for any of (its) products or services.”

This very public dispute has reignited a debate over government access to encrypted Apple user data that is reminiscent of the San Bernardino affair, when the FBI made a similar request before abandoning it after finding another way to access the iPhone without Apple’s help.

Fast forward to today and Apple is potentially facing a similar situation again, this time in Canada. As reported ReutersA new bill could give the government the power to force 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 to access digital information related to criminal investigations.

Although it doesn’t specifically mention encryption, Apple says the proposal’s access powers could still be used to force companies to weaken encrypted services.

Here is Apple for Reuters:

“In an era of growing and pervasive threats from malicious actors seeking access to user information, Bill C-22, as written, would harm our ability to deliver the powerful privacy and security features that users have come to expect from Apple. (…) This legislation could allow the Canadian government to force companies to break encryption by inserting backdoors into their products – something Apple will never do.”

While the bill is still debated in the House of Commons, Reuters notes that it was proposed “by Canada’s ruling Liberal Party, which won a parliamentary majority last month.”

Apple’s concerns were echoed by Meta, whose executives said in prepared testimony that, “as written, the bill could require companies like Meta to create or maintain capabilities that break, weaken, or circumvent encryption or other zero-knowledge security architectures, and force vendors to install government spyware directly on their systems.”

To read Reuters‘ full report, follow this link.

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