Signal, the encrypted messaging app used by journalists, activists, and anyone who’d prefer their group chats stay private, is threatening to pack its bags and leave the UK entirely. The reason: proposed government measures that Signal’s president says would turn every phone into a surveillance device.
Meredith Whittaker, who has led the Signal Foundation since 2022, has been unambiguous about where the company stands. If the UK government forces Signal to weaken its end-to-end encryption, the app will simply stop operating in Britain.
What the UK government wants, and why Signal won’t budge
The push comes from Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s administration, which has been advocating for phone screening and client-side scanning technologies. The stated goal is child protection, falling under the broader Online Safety framework designed to block harmful content before it reaches users.
Client-side scanning means software on your phone would analyze messages before they’re encrypted and sent. Your device would read your messages before you even hit send, checking them against a database of prohibited content.
