The Strong Borders Act was introduced to enable the government and law enforcement to better secure the Canada/US border. The omnibus bill contains provisions that critics say will undermine privacy and Charter rights. The implications are sweeping — so we’ve gathered these analyses and commentaries from thought leaders in Canada and elsewhere that are particularly relevant to privacy professionals.
Justice Canada’s Charter Statement on Bill C-2
The Charter Statement shares some of the Minister’s key considerations that informed the review of the bill for inconsistency with the Charter.
Bill C-2 Backgrounder: New Search Powers in the Strong Borders Act and Their Charter Compliance
A concise overview of the most significant expansion of investigative search powers in Canada in over a decade, and comments on their constitutional validity.
Bill C‑2:
A Critical Risk for Privacy
An anlysis of the bill’s compatibility with global trends on mass surveillance practices under the legal framework and jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union.
The “Strong Borders Act,” Misses the Mark — Only Deep Legal Reforms Will Confront Canada’s Fentanyl Networks
Bill C-2 “is an omnibus solution that expands the state’s reach online” while doing nothing to halt lethal and criminal activity.
Canada’s Bill C-2 Opens the Floodgates to U.S. Surveillance
Bill C-2, the so-called Strong Borders Act, is a sprawling surveillance bill with multiple privacy-invasive provisions. But the thrust is clear: it’s a roadmap to aligning Canadian surveillance with U.S. demands.
Understanding Bill C-2
The bill proposes a wide range of national security measures, including expanded surveillance powers, broader data collection and analysis, and enhanced information sharing between federal and foreign government agencies.
Lawful Access on Steroids: Why Bill C-2’s Big Brother Tactics Combine Expansive Warrantless Disclosure with Unprecedented Secrecy
Officials acknowledged that Bill C-2 extends far beyond just telecom companies.
Canada’s Sovereignty Shell Game
Canada says no to U.S. tech and yes to U.S.-style surveillance
Boundless boundaries of the Strong Borders Act
New law creates sweeping (and secret) police and surveillance power
Unspoken Implications
A Preliminary Analysis of Bill C-2 and Canada’s Potential Data-Sharing Obligations Towards the United States and Other Countries
Canada’s C-2 Bill Is The Latest Challenge to Digital Sovereignty
If you think Canada is a privacy-respecting, mild-mannered member of the global democratic order, you might need to reconsider, at least when it comes to digital sovereignty.
Critical Analysis of Canada’s Bill C-2
Systemic Risks and Worst-Case Scenarios of the “Strong Borders Act”
A Big Brother Bill
Experts say Bill C-2 lowers the bar and broadens the scope to allow more access by police and intelligence agents to Canadians’ private data
The proposed Strong Borders Act gives police new invasive search powers that may breach Charter rights
Buried deep in a border security bill are police powers to peer into private information
Strong Borders or Overreach?
This Bill gives the government sweeping new powers and could Bill C‑2 could let the government invade your privacy.
Errors in the Bill C-2 Charter Statement
An exaination of the incorrect and misleading statements in the Bill C-2 Lawful Access Charter Statement.
Canadian Bill C-2 Gives The Government Huge Power To Spy On Citizens
An examination of the provision in Bill C-2 that allows warrantless informaton demands.
What the ‘Strong Borders Act’ Gets Wrong
Credible critics call it a ‘chilling example of the dangers of unconditional information sharing’
Legal Impact and Structural Implications of Bill C-2 (Strong Borders Act, 2025)
Bill C-2 represents a sweeping legislative framework primarily focused on national security, law enforcement, cross-border operations, and information-sharing reforms.
Bill C-2 Would Align Canada’s Security and Immigration Laws with US
Bill C-2 represents an escalation in Ottawa’s cooperation with Washington on security and immigration.
Canada’s Lawful Access Bill: Heavy on Secrecy, Light on Accountability
Canada takes a middle path between the more and less coercive approaches of Britain and the United States — but with fewer safeguards.
Critical Analysis of Canada’s Bill C-2
Bill C-2 proposes sweeping changes to Canada’s legal framework across multiple domains, with provisions that could significantly expand government powers in the name of national security.
Canadian Parliament Considers Bill allowing Warrantless Requests to Doctors, Abortion Providers
A clause in the new border bill would allow police and Canada’s security apparat to ask abortion providers, doctors, and hotels for information about clients, without a warrant.
Canada’s Bill C-2 threatens to undermine privacy & encryption
After UK, USA & Australia, it’s now Canada’s turn to decide on one of the worst surveillance bills; this time hidden in an anti-money laundering law.
Coalitions Call for Withdrawal of Bill C-2
Privacy eroding elements Canada’s Strong Borders Act include a power to demand revealing information from any service provider, without independent authorization.
The Great Canadian Rights Grab
To keep the US happy, Mark Carney’s Liberal government is pushing Bill C-2 — expanding surveillance, limiting refugee protections, and eroding privacy in the name of national security. It’s Canada’s own PATRIOT Act, minus the excuse of an actual attack.
Bill C-2 and the Quiet Erosion of the Canadian Charter: A Slippery Slope Toward Surveillance Without Safeguards
Although Bill C-2 it is presented as a practical tool for police to respond quickly to threats, its implications pose significant risks to a society grounded in constitutional rights, due process, and the presumption of innocence.
