Proton says Bill C-22 would block its expansion in Canada

Swiss privacy company Proton says it is no longer exploring setting up its North American headquarters in Canada. The company ties the change to Bill C-22, a federal bill that would give police and intelligence agencies new powers over data held by technology companies.

Proton's chief technology officer, Bart Butler, said in an email: "if C-22 passes in its current form, expansion into Canada would be impossible."

Before concerns about the bill arose, Proton had been exploring putting servers in Canada to serve its North American customers, and opening an office in the country. Butler said the company would not stop offering services in Canada. He said, however, that it would not expand, hire or take other steps in the country if the bill passes as it stands.

Proton has more than 100 million customers worldwide and uses end-to-end and zero-access encryption. The company is majority-owned by a non-profit foundation. It shut its U.S. office in 2020 because the climate there had become increasingly hostile.

Bill C-22 is an Act respecting lawful access, a government bill in the first session of the 45th Parliament. Its short title is the Lawful Access Act, 2026. Part 1, titled Timely Access to Data and Information, amends the Criminal Code, the main federal criminal law. According to the Library of Parliament's legislative summary, that part deals with the first aspect of lawful access, making it easier for law enforcement agencies and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) to get information.

The bill would require electronic service providers to change their systems so they can provide surveillance and monitoring capabilities to police services and CSIS. Companies operating in Canada would have to keep secret any ministerial orders they receive. The bill also proposes powers to force companies to collect customer metadata and store it for up to six months.

That metadata would not include emails, web-browsing history, social-media activity or text messages. It could, however, show which phone numbers have been in contact and include data that pinpoints a person's location.

Apple and Meta have expressed misgivings about the bill. Encrypted messaging app Signal has warned it would withdraw its services from Canada if asked to compromise users' privacy under the bill's new powers. The bill is now before the Senate, the upper house of Parliament.