Signal is warning it will walk away from Europe rather than participate in what privacy defenders describe as one of the most dangerous surveillance schemes ever proposed by the EU.
Lawmakers in Brussels are pressing for a law that would compel messaging apps to break their own security by installing scanning systems inside private communications.
Meredith Whittaker, president of Signal, said the company will never compromise on encryption to satisfy government demands.
“Unfortunately, if we were given the choice of either undermining the integrity of our encryption and our data protection guarantees or leaving Europe, we would make the decision to leave the market,” she told the dpa news agency.
The draft legislation is framed as a child protection measure, but would require all major messengers, from WhatsApp to Signal to Telegram, to monitor every message before it is encrypted.
This would eliminate true private communication in Europe and create tools that could be abused for mass surveillance.
Privacy advocates have repeatedly warned that once a backdoor exists, there is no way to restrict who uses it or for what purpose.
Whittaker was clear about the stakes. “It guarantees the privacy of millions upon millions of people around the world, often in life-threatening situations as well.”
She added that Signal refuses to enable chat control because “it’s unfortunate that politicians continue to fall prey to a kind of magical thinking that assumes you can create a backdoor that only the good have access to.”
Any such system, she argued, would make everyone less safe.
The European Parliament already rejected the scanning mandate with a strong cross-party majority, recognizing the threat it poses to basic rights.
But within the Council of Member States, the push for chat control remains alive. Denmark’s presidency could renew momentum for the proposal, even though countries like Germany have so far resisted.
Germany’s position is pivotal. The coalition agreement of its current government promises to defend “the confidentiality of private communications and anonymity online.”
Yet the inclusion of the phrase “in principle” raises alarms, suggesting exceptions could open the door to backdoors in messaging apps.
If Germany wavers, Europe could be on the verge of losing secure communication altogether.
Whittaker said Signal would explore alternative ways to keep operating, just as it has when authoritarian states such as Russia or Iran tried to block the app.
But she left no doubt that if forced to comply with surveillance laws, Signal will withdraw. “But ultimately, we’d be leaving the market before having to comply with dangerous laws like these.”
Whittaker also highlighted the growing risks from so-called AI agents, digital assistants that demand sweeping access to users’ devices to handle tasks like scheduling or payments.
“These AI agents demand vast access capabilities and almost unlimited privileges. Doing so gives them access to critical applications and services – from the calendar, to the email account, the Signal app, or the credit card.”
She stressed that the responsibility lies with operating system giants like Microsoft, Google, and Apple, who must provide developers with ways to block such invasive systems.
Without strong safeguards at the platform level, user privacy will continue to be eroded by both government mandates and corporate surveillance.
The EU’s proposal would normalize constant monitoring of personal messages, replacing secure channels with government-approved scanning systems.
