Privacy

This is the first in a series of articles about privacy-related issues that may be of interest to state attorneys general. When I was in law school, “privacy law” wasn’t really discussed. Today, it seems like all anyone can talk about. That might be because I work on privacy and…

On September 22, the Act to modernize legislative provisions relating to the protection of personal information (“Bill 64”) received royal assent, after its adoption by the National Assembly of Quebec a day earlier. The Act represents a major reform of the current privacy regime in Quebec, with changes aimed at…

In Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia, provincial governments are in various stages of public consultations on privacy legislation reform. Given that Canada’s key overarching legal framework, the Privacy Act, was created before the advent of the internet, this is not only natural, but long overdue. However, instead of a…

BACK IN FEBRUARY, Facebook announced a little experiment. It would reduce the amount of political content shown to a subset of users in a few countries, including the US, and then ask them about the experience. “Our goal is to preserve the ability for people to find and interact with political…

The mobile apps installed on our smartphones are one of the biggest threats to our digital privacy. They are capable of collecting vast amounts of personal data, often highly sensitive. The consent model on which privacy laws are based doesn’t work. App users remain concerned about privacy, as a recent…

On July 8th,  the Federal Court ruled in the Office of the Privacy Commissioner’s (OPC) favour in a decision that touched PIPEDA’s application to search engines and what has become known in privacy law as “the right to be forgotten.” The decision brings clarity on whether search engines like Google,…

With privacy becoming ever-more important to consumers, good privacy practices are good for business. Follow these tips to protect your customers’ personal information and comply with the federal law. Get your customers’ consent to collect their personal information and limit your collection and retention of it. Ensure staff receive appropriate privacy protection training. Limit and monitor access…

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) has closed the file on a complaint against three of Canada’s federal political parties noting that the federal private sector privacy law does not apply to the activities outlined by the complainant. The OPC concluded that the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA or…

May 11, 2021 Mr. Chris Warkentin, M.P. Chair, Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics Sixth Floor, 131 Queen Street House of Commons Ottawa ON K1A 0A6 Dear Mr. Chair: Subject: Submission on C-11 Further to my appearance before you on May 10, 2021, please find enclosed our submission…

Responsible data practices must minimize negative impacts. Key data policy issues will influence how all sectors of society will interact with data in the fast-evolving future of technology. Given this changing landscape, experts weigh in on the data policy topics top of mind for them right now. There is untapped…