Bill C-22 say you don't have to do anything that would create a 'systematic vulnerability'. But then why be so cagey in the way you define it? The gov seems to want the political win of saying 'no backdoors to encryption,' while keeping the door open.

Opposition to Bill C-22 has reached a boiling point. Apple, Meta, Signal, and several VPNs are threatening to pull services from Canada. What changes to the bill can we expect, and can the encryption and metadata powers survive a Charter challenge? robertdiab.substack.com/p/pressure-m...

@mgeist.bsky.social pulls apart the tenuous rationale that police and CSIS have offered in the past week in defence of Bill C-22, with remarkable clarity. None of the obstacles to investigation they point to justify the extraordinary powers sought here. mgeist.substack.com/p/the-govern...

Great overview of the concerns over bulk metadata retention in Bill C-22, and the likely Charter challenge, by Global News: globalnews.ca/news/1185520...

If you are new to the discussion about Bill C-22, the Lawful Access Act, I think this discussion with @mgeist.bsky.social and @robertdiab.bsky.social on Michael's podcast provides a good picture of all the issues. www.michaelgeist.ca/2026/03/the-...

And they do take pictures.

Looking forward to this!

You just have to look at the "problems" that CSIS says lawful access will solve, & you can figure out the solution. Interestingly, they never get into the specifics of the solution (left to the regs). The only solution to this "problem" is mandatory ID verification for customers.

CSIS in the Globe today on Bill C-22: On one occasion, a foreign partner gave us phone numbers we couldn't trace. So now everyone's metadata must be retained — everyone must be surveilled — so we don't have that problem again. If we ever do.

Watching the demo, seems like it's going to be a big leap.

As concerns over Bill C-22 continue to heat up, this is an absolutely remarkable use of AI to engage a wider public for a positive purpose. Designed to be skimmed but still highly informative, and beautifully laid out. dontsurveil.me/c22.html

Knocking on wood for you Jordan!

Delighted to see this reposted at the Walrus thewalrus.ca/why-forcing-...

At yesterday's Public Safety Committee hearing on Bill C-22, I was asked for a final thought. I framed the gov's recurring image of a kidnapped 14-year-old — to justify metadata preservation — as the ticking bomb scenario redux. Unlikely, but effective at making the unacceptable seem necessary.

Action on the lawful access bill is heating up, now before the Public Safety Committee of the House. Appearing before it this afternoon with David Fraser (privacylawyer.ca) and Michael Geist @mgeist.bsky.social.

Apple is entering the chat and warning the Canadian Government that the encryption break provisions in Bill C22 are unsafe for Canadians. @openmedia.org #cdnpoli www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/art...

If you're too busy to write something — a letter, an opinion — should you have AI draft it for you? In Slaw today, I take on two arguments in favour of it: -done well, co-authoring with AI can still be you -for a busy lawyer, the AI letter is better than no letter. www.slaw.ca/2026/05/06/t...

It's very easy in hindsight to say the world would be better off if OpenAI had flagged the Tumbler Ridge shooter to authorities: but the more fundamental question is what level of collaboration do we want to see between law enforcement and the tech products we use? www.cigionline.org/articles/sho...

"We write as lawyers and law professors [in] privacy law and constitutional rights... [C]ertain provisions of the bill as ...drafted raise serious constitutional concerns and fail to strike a reasonable balance [btwn] the legitimate needs of law enforcement and the privacy rights of Canadians."

This morning I joined 12 privacy law scholars in an open letter to MPs on Bill C-22. The lawful access bill improves on C-2, but the subscriber ID order and metadata retention powers, among others, still don't meet Charter standards. robertdiab.substack.com/p/an-open-le...

Bill C-25 will make political deepfakes a crime. But it won't restore Canadian news to Facebook or Instagram, or make credible journalism more visible on X or YouTube. My take on what a stronger response would look like: robertdiab.substack.com/p/political-...

@mgeist.bsky.social's recent Law Bytes episode with Zack Shapiro is one of the best discussions I’ve heard on how to use AI effectively in practice. Many of Shapiro’s insights are fascinating and empowering. But he also paints a picture that leaves a lot out.

Another fantastic and spot-on accurate review of #AI for Communication @routledgebooks.bsky.social This one was written by @robertdiab.bsky.social for the National Communication Assocation journal "Critical Studies in Media Communication." doi.org/10.1080/1529...

It's always a pleasure to speak with @mgeist.bsky.social and @robertdiab.bsky.social. Robert and I were guests on Michael's great Law Bytes Podcast to discuss Bill C-22, the Lawful Access Act 2026. Check it out!

If you care about #lawfulaccess (and you should), you should read what Robert has to say.

Would it matter to you if your cellphone provider were forced to preserve information about where and when you used your phone, and who you were in touch with, for possible use by police? Why I think this new power in Bill C-22 violates the Charter: www.robertdiab.ca/posts/metada...

I have some thoughts on #BillC22 related to #lawfulaccess. More to come ...

Lawful access is back with Bill C-22 this week. Some concerns have been addressed, but many remain — along with some new ones. I wrote an overview of what C-22 fixes and what it doesn’t. I'm not sure all of it will withstand a Charter challenge. www.robertdiab.ca/posts/bill-c...

OPED: @robertdiab.bsky.social takes Claude Cowork on a test drive with CanLii. nationalmagazine.ca/en-ca/articl...

OPED: @robertdiab.bsky.social says Cowork does something he's been eagerly awaiting since chatbots gained the ability to search the web in 2023. www.nationalmagazine.ca/en-ca/articl...

Tentative answer: yes, an AI disclosure law would engage section 8 of the Charter, because it would involve an interference with a reasonable expectation of privacy. But it would be a reasonable law if made similar enough to powers to search or seize in exigent circumstances.

In the Globe yesterday: Asked whether he was considering banning ChatGPT in Canada, Mr. Solomon replied, “I would say all options are on the table.”

My review of @davidgunkel.bsky.social's new book "AI for Communication" just out in CSMC -- short version: it strikes a fine balance between substance and concision. www.tandfonline.com/eprint/8CDKU...

How we can tell you’re using AI and why it matters. www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...

As cases involving AI summaries move forward, courts are grappling with how to assess fair use, says Robert Diab. At stake are key questions about how to treat copying by AI systems, how much summaries can resemble protected works, and whether they serve as substitutes that harm content creators.

A law paper has gone viral arguing that AI is destined to destroy democracy, the rule of law, education, and the press. The authors identify real dangers, but they press them so far, and with such certainty, that nuance is lost.

Canada is criminalizing sexual deepfakes and sextortion, but it likely won’t be enough. In a new post, I look at how prevalent this conduct is in Canada and why regulating AI tools and platforms may matter more. robertdiab.substack.com/p/sexual-dee...

Bill C-8 (the proposed Cyber Security Act) has flown under the radar — but it raises serious Charter questions.

Bill C-2 is back. After a recent roundtable with the Minister of Public Safety calling for ideas for how to improve the bill, I’ve posted “Five Ways to Fix Bill C-2 – and Better Protect Our Privacy” robertdiab.substack.com/p/five-ways-...

My nominations for the 2025 Clawbies: - @mgeist.bsky.social for LawBytes, a podcast I have found indispensable for years — celebrating its 250th episode this year. - @privacylawyer.ca for his outstanding YouTube channel, Privacy Guy — enormously informative and insightful. #clawbies2025

Can lawyers safely use AI on client files or Crown disclosure? Law society and Crown policies don’t offer clear answers. Even “legal AI” tools like Lexis’ Protégé leave room for doubt. Some lawyers — and courts — are turning to the nuclear option: running AI offline.

When you're not sure commercial AI platforms are private enough to trust with client information or Crown disclosure, running your own model may be the answer, writes @robertdiab.bsky.social nationalmagazine.ca/en-ca/articl...

Should law students use AI to summarize cases, draft outlines, or edit writing? I explore 10 ways students are using AI in law schools worldwide, and the key challenge of avoiding over-reliance. www.slaw.ca/2025/11/10/h...

Looking forward to it as well. Glad it's finally happening!

Do police and CSIS need new “lawful intercept” powers to keep up with technology? Parliament says yes. But in a new declassified report meant to justify Bill C-2, it offers little hard data to back this up.

Do CSIS and police really need new “lawful intercept” powers? Parliament says yes — but the evidence is thin. Why a new declassified report making the case for Bill C-2 doesn’t hold up. robertdiab.substack.com/p/do-csis-an...

Video generating #AI like #Sora2 highlight the technology's voracious thirst for energy and water, costs that must be transparent if growth is to be sustainable, argues @robertdiab.bsky.social theconversation.com/openais-newl... #sustainability

OpenAI’s new Sora 2 can turn text into lifelike video, but at what environmental cost? As AI moves from words to video, its power and water demands are set to soar. My latest for The Conversation/Substack asks how sustainable the next AI leap really is. robertdiab.substack.com/p/openais-ne...

Publishers are suing Google over AI Overviews, claiming traffic losses. But as Robert Diab argues: “The attempt to rely on copyright and antitrust law is really an indirect attempt to assert what can’t be claimed directly: a property right in clicks.”

Which is not to say that some of those controversial provisions might not return in a separate bill. But not if no other party is on board…