Signal condemns UK’s new surveillance laws

Signal, the end‑to‑end encrypted messaging platform, released a statement on June 8, 2026 denouncing the United Kingdom’s newest surveillance legislation. The blog post, titled Surveillance Is Not Safety, argues that the measures undermine the privacy‑by‑design principles that underpin modern software development and put user data at risk [Signal Blog].

The statement points to specific provisions that compel service providers to retain metadata and to comply with government data‑access requests that conflict with strong encryption. Signal warns that such requirements force engineers to embed backdoors or weaken security controls, eroding the trust users place in encrypted communications. The blog notes that the UK’s approach runs counter to the European Union’s GDPR framework, which mandates robust data protection for citizens.

Signal’s critique is aimed at developers and product teams building privacy‑focused applications. By highlighting the clash between national security mandates and technical safeguards, the organization calls on the tech community to push back against policies that jeopardize end‑to‑end encryption. The firm urges policymakers to respect the technical realities of secure messaging rather than imposing blanket data‑collection mandates that could compromise user safety [Signal Blog].