From TechRadar · · 1m 20s
Canada's Bill C-22 and the fight to keep encryption intact
Digital rights groups want Brussels to push back on a Canadian bill they say would weaken the encryption everyone relies on.
In brief
Digital rights groups want Brussels to push back on a Canadian bill they say would weaken the encryption everyone relies on. Encryption does not stop at a border. A law that weakens it for one country weakens it for every user of the same app. Originally reported by TechRadar.
Canada picks a fight with encryption
Bill C-22 has digital rights advocates warning that Canada is moving to weaken the encryption that protects private messages.
The call goes to Brussels
Campaigners are asking the EU to step in, betting that Europe's privacy rules give it the standing and the weight to push back.
Backdoors do not stay local
Encryption is not built country by country. Break it for Canadian users and the same weakness ships to everyone on the same app.
Access becomes surveillance
Powers written for specific investigations tend to settle in as standing capability, turning private conversations into something searchable.
Privacy firms line up
VPN providers including Windscribe have joined the opposition, casting the bill as a direct threat to the tools people use to stay private.
What happens next
The open question is whether outside pressure reshapes the bill before it passes. Watch the amendment stage, that is where encryption lives or dies.
What it means
Encryption does not stop at a border. A law that weakens it for one country weakens it for every user of the same app.
