Canada ‘to reaffirm’ iPhone12 compliance after France ordered to stop the sales of the product amid concerns over radiation levels
Canadian regulators said they are taking additional measures “to reaffirm” the compliance of Apple’s iPhone 12 after France ordered the tech company to stop selling the product, saying it emits electromagnetic radiation at levels above European Union (EU) standards for exposure.
In response to questions from the Star, a spokesperson for Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) said the department routinely inspects products on the market. An audit on the iPhone 12 conducted in February 2023 found the product complied with applicable radiofrequency limits.
“Canada’s standards for cellphone safety are among the toughest in the world,” the spokesperson noted. “These stringent limits are set far below the threshold for all known adverse health effects and provide protection for all age groups, including children, on a continuous basis.”
Canadian standards in line with international regulators
In Canada, the acceptable limit of electromagnetic energy absorption when an iPhone 12 is held in a hand or carried in a pocket is four watts per kilogram. That exposure limit is in line with other regulators around the world, including the EU.
However, French regulators recently tested the iPhone 12 and found the device yielded 5.74 watts per kilogram of electromagnetic energy absorption.
The country’s National Frequency Agency on Tuesday called on Apple to “implement all available means to rapidly fix this malfunction” for phones already in use and said it would monitor device updates. If they don’t work, “Apple will have to recall” phones that have already been sold, it said.
Apple disputed the French regulator’s findings. It said the iPhone 12 has been certified by multiple international bodies and complies with all applicable regulations and standards for radiation around the world.
The U.S. tech company said it has provided the French agency with multiple lab results carried out both by the company and third-party labs proving the phone’s compliance.
Software updates can change radiation levels
Jean-Noël Barrot, France’s minister in charge of digital issues, told France Info radio that the National Frequency Agency “is in charge of controlling our phones which, as there are software updates, may emit a little more or a little less electromagnetic waves.”
He said the iPhone 12’s radiation levels are “slightly higher” than EU standards but “significantly lower than levels where scientific studies consider there may be consequences for users. But the rule is the rule.”
The agency’s tests are carried out at diagnostic lab that uses a liquid-filled mould simulating a human head and body with brain and muscle tissue. Devices transmit at maximum power for the six-minute test, the agency says on its website, acknowledging that the tests “do not reflect the most common use of a telephone.”
During calls, the phone only transmits half the time, when the user is speaking, and calls rarely last six minutes, the agency said. Mobile internet or video use lasts longer, but the phone “rarely transmits more than 10 per cent of the time,” it added.
Operational parameters vary between countries
On why the iPhone 12 may have passed tests in Canada but not in France, despite similar standards, the spokesperson for ISED told the Star that operational parameters such as frequency and smartphone power can vary between countries.
“As such, a product to comply with French requirements does not automatically yield a non-compliant result in Canada,” he added, noting, however, that should the government become aware of any issues concerning the device, it will “take immediate action to protect Canadians.”
Cellphones have been labelled as “possible” carcinogens by the World Health Organization’s cancer research arm, putting them in the same category as coffee, diesel fumes and the pesticide DDT. The radiation produced by cellphones cannot directly damage DNA and is different from stronger types of radiation like X-rays or ultraviolet light.
Experts have recommended that people concerned about their cellphone radiation exposure use earphones or switch to texting.
This article was reported by The Star
