Signal, a privacy-focused encrypted messaging platform, has criticised proposed UK measures aimed at protecting children online, warning that the plans could lead to increased surveillance and undermine privacy rights.
In a statement issued on June 8, Signal said children should be protected and nurtured but argued that mandatory age-verification and content-scanning requirements would not effectively safeguard children and could instead expand surveillance capabilities.
The company claimed that requiring content on devices used in the UK to be scanned for nudity, combined with age-verification systems, could create tools that may later be expanded to monitor other forms of content.
Signal also warned that such measures could strengthen the dominance of major technology firms by increasing their control over users’ personal information.
The statement follows reports that the UK government has asked technology companies such as Apple and Google to block access to naked images on smartphones and other devices used by under-18s.
The UK government has given major technology companies, including Apple and Google, three months to activate built-in features or implement technical solutions on smartphones and tablets to detect and block nude images of children, according to a Home Office press release published on 8 June 2026.
According to the BBC, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has told firms to either activate existing safety features or update software to prevent children from taking, sending or viewing sexually explicit images on their devices.
Signal, a non-profit messaging service known for its end-to-end encryption technology, argued that child safety should instead be addressed through stronger education, social services and safeguards around artificial intelligence technologies, rather than what it described as “surveillance infrastructure.” (Newswire)
