Toronto-Based VPN Provider Plans to Quit Canada over Lawful-Access Bill
Toronto-based VPN provider Psiphon has threatened to relocate its operations if Canada's proposed Bill C-22 is enacted. The company argues that the bill's lawful-access requirements would force them to compromise user privacy and security, undermining their mission to bypass global internet censorship.
Why it matters
This highlights the ongoing tension between national security surveillance mandates and the operational viability of privacy-focused technology companies.
Share Psiphon, a software company spun out of the Citizen Lab that helps internet users living under oppressive regimes evade online censorship, plans to leave Canada if the federal government’s lawful-access bill passes in its current form, reports The Globe and Mail .
If passed, Bill C-22 would require electronic service providers to make secret changes to their systems to provide police services and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) with surveillance and monitoring capabilities.
Psiphon was originally created as a Citizen Lab project in 2006, and became a private company soon afterward. It has 20 million monthly users worldwide that rely on the software to bypass online censorship in countries such as Iran, Myanmar, Russia, and China.
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