Tech firms urge Canada to amend Bill C-22 surveillance legislation

Major technology companies and privacy organizations are calling on the Canadian government to amend Bill C-22, also known as the Lawful Access Act. In a joint letter organized by the Chamber of Progress, providers including NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Windscribe, and Coinbase Canada are urging ministers of Public Safety and Industry to revise the legislation before it becomes law.

The proposed bill aims to modernize Canada’s lawful-access framework, providing law enforcement and intelligence agencies with broader tools to obtain digital information. However, industry leaders warn that the requirements could force digital service providers to weaken end-to-end encryption by creating systemic backdoors. There are also significant concerns regarding mandates for companies to retain sensitive user metadata for up to six months.

Signatories expressed uncertainty regarding which companies would be classified as “core providers” and warned that the current requirements could create security vulnerabilities. The legislation has passed the House of Commons and is currently before the Senate for further review.