Apple and Meta are both pushing back hard against the federal government’s proposed Bill C-22, telling a parliamentary committee that the legislation could effectively turn smartphones and messaging apps into surveillance tools for the state.
Meta’s Director of Public Policy for Canada, Rachel Curran, appeared before the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security and took direct aim at Part 2 of the bill. Her argument was straightforward: the provisions as written could force companies to build backdoors into encrypted services like WhatsApp and Messenger, which she said would make Meta an extension of the government’s surveillance apparatus rather than a private communications platform.
“The technical community’s consensus on this is clear: it is not possible to build backdoors to encrypted systems for law enforcement without creating vulnerabilities that will be exploited by malicious actors,” Curran said, in a copy of her statement emailed to iPhone in Canada.
Apple also was critical of Bill C-22, as it said the bill would undermine its ability to offer the privacy and security features its users rely on. “This legislation could allow the Canadian government to force companies to break encryption by inserting backdoors into their products,” Apple said to Reuters, adding that it would never do so.
Meta went further, warning that the bill could force providers to install government spyware directly on their systems. The company pointed to the U.K. and the U.S. as cautionary examples, noting that both countries faced serious backlash or walked back similar proposals after security concerns mounted. Meta also argued the bill would chill tech investment and innovation in Canada more broadly.
Curran drove the point home with a practical framing that goes beyond just privacy advocates. “Weakening encryption does not just affect the target of an investigation. It affects every Canadian who depends on secure private communications to bank, access health care, run a business, or simply talk to their family,” she said.
Both companies are now calling on Ottawa to amend the bill, specifically asking that it remove any obligation to install third-party surveillance tools and tighten the definition of “systemic vulnerability” to ensure encryption protections stay intact.
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