Police departments across Canada, including Calgary, Edmonton and several other Alberta forces, could soon be authorized to block cellphone signals under proposed federal regulations expanding the use of electronic jamming equipment.Blacklock's Reporter says the changes would allow designated municipal and provincial police agencies to interfere with wireless communications during criminal investigations, public safety operations and national security activities.Currently, cellphone jammers are generally prohibited under the federal Radiocommunications Act, with violations carrying fines of up to $25,000. Limited exemptions have been granted to the RCMP, Correctional Service of Canada and Department of National Defence.“The RCMP is the only law enforcement agency that has been issued an exemption order,” the Department of Industry wrote in a legal notice outlining the proposed changes.“Allowing certain other law enforcement agencies to use jammers will decrease their dependency on the RCMP and empower them to fulfill their operational requirements,” the department said.The proposed regulations follow federal consultations with dozens of police departments about their ability to operate specialized equipment designed to disrupt communications between cellphones and wireless towers.“Certain law enforcement agencies have experience with specialized equipment and operational capacity that could be applied to use radiocommunication jammers,” cabinet wrote in a Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement.Alberta police agencies included in the proposal are the Calgary Police Service, Edmonton Police Service, Lethbridge Police Service and Medicine Hat Police Service.Other municipal forces identified include departments in Barrie, Durham Region, Halton Region, Hamilton, Kingston, Niagara Region, Ottawa, Peel Region, Regina, Saskatoon, Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, Toronto, Thunder Bay, Vancouver, Victoria, Windsor, Winnipeg and York Region.The Ontario Provincial Police, Sûreté du Québec and Royal Newfoundland Constabulary would also be authorized to use the technology.The proposed order would permit designated police agencies to conduct jamming activities for a broad range of purposes, including national security, public safety and criminal investigations anywhere in Canada.Federal officials said the equipment could be used to protect critical infrastructure, secure major public gatherings and assist officers working at crime scenes.“For example, the order could support law enforcement agencies in the protection of critical infrastructure, major public events and crime scenes,” said the Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement.“In addition, it may enable the exempted law enforcement agencies to assist the RCMP in maintaining the security and integrity of the Canadian border.”.The federal government said the expanded powers build on experience gained by the Mounties since they were first authorized to use cellphone jamming equipment in 2015.“This order builds on more than a decade of experience gained through RCMP exemptions,” cabinet wrote.The department did not provide further details about the RCMP's operational experience with the technology.Cellphone jammers work by disrupting radio signals between mobile devices and cellular networks, potentially preventing affected phones from making calls, sending messages or accessing wireless data services.Depending on the equipment and its operating range, the technology can also interfere with communications involving devices other than those targeted by police.The federal government previously expanded jamming exemptions to the Correctional Service of Canada in 2025 following complaints that inmates were using illegally obtained cellphones to communicate outside prison walls.Prison officials said contraband phones allowed inmates to bypass monitored institutional telephone systems.Federal penitentiaries seized approximately 2,800 electronic devices, including cellphones, between 2018 and 2023.In a 2023 Inquiry Of Ministry tabled in the House of Commons, the Correctional Service identified smuggled cellphones as one of the most common forms of prison contraband, ranking behind narcotics and tobacco.Similar restrictions on unauthorized cellphone communications have been pursued in the United States.In 2021, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission authorized measures allowing state prisons to use cellphone jamming technology to combat contraband wireless devices.The proposed Canadian regulations would extend jamming authority beyond federal agencies to a wide range of provincial and municipal police services.However, Ottawa has not announced when the new rules would take effect.
