Signal hints at possible withdrawal from Canada due to the Legal Access Act.

CoinFeed reported on May 15th, citing Cointelegraph, that privacy-focused messaging app Signal stated it may withdraw from the Canadian market if forced to comply with Canada's proposed C-22 (Lawful Access Act). This act requires electronic service providers to establish technical surveillance capabilities and retain some user metadata for up to a year to assist law enforcement investigations into crimes such as terrorism and child exploitation. Udbhav Tiwari, Signal's Vice President of Strategy and Global Affairs, stated that the act could threaten end-to-end encryption, making private messaging services vulnerable to cyberattacks, and the company "would rather withdraw from Canada" than compromise its commitment to user privacy. VPN service provider Windscribe also indicated it would follow suit if C-22 passes, as VPNs almost certainly require the recording of user identity data.