News

  • Concerns raised about Google's "Streetview" program
    - 2007-09-13 -

    The Privacy Commissioner of Canada has asked Google and a Calgary-based company working for Google to explain how their "Street View" digital imaging program meets the requirements of Canadian privacy laws. Street View, currently limited to US locations but planning to cover Canada as well, uses street level photographs to let computer users explore city streets and neighbourhoods on their computer screens.  But the program may violate Canadian privacy law to the extent that the pictures include identifiable individuals who did not consent to this use of their photo.

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  • Conservatives considering expanded police powers
    - 2007-09-13 -

    The federal government appears to be moving ahead with a controversial new law that would allow police to obtain name, address and other basic subscriber information from telephone and internet service providers upon request, without necessarily any reasonable grounds to suspect criminal activity.  Public Safety Canada's Consultation document, initially shared with only a few select stakeholders, considers a new law very similar to that proposed by the Liberals in  2005. Comments are due by October 12, 2007.
    CTV News story, Sept.12/07
    CIPPIC webpage on recent history of "Lawful Access" legislative proposals
    CIPPIC FAQs on "Lawful Access" in Canada

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  • Study Estimates Economic Value of Fair Use
    - 2007-09-13 -

    A study by the Computer and Communications Industry Association has estimated the contribution of "fair use" and other limitations on copyright-holders' exclusive rights to the U.S. economy to amount to $4.5 trillion annually. The study - the first of its kind - concludes that fair use has become more important as digital technologies occupy a greater and greater share of US economic activity.

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  • Ontario Privacy Commissioner issues cease collection order against City of Ottawa
    - 2007-09-12 -

    The Ontario Privacy Commissioner invoked for the first time a cease collection and destroy records provision in Ontario privacy laws – to the City of Ottawa and the Ottawa Police to stop collecting extensive personal information from people selling used goods to second-hand stores. She also ordered the destruction of all personal information already collected.

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  • Privacy Commissioner releases Breach Notification Guidelines
    - 2007-08-24 -

    The Privacy Commissioner of Canada has published a set of guidelines designed to help organizations take the right steps after a privacy breach, including notifying people at risk of harm after their information has been lost, stolen, or mistakenly disclosed.  The Commissioner continues to press for legislative requirements for breach notification.

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  • CIPPIC files privacy complaint about online posting practices of Administrative Tribunals
    - 2007-08-21 -

    CIPPIC has filed a complaint under s.29 of the federal Privacy Act about two federal tribunals that post full decisions online without redacting often highly senstive personal information.  In its letter, CIPPIC asks the Privacy Commissioner to establish guidelines for online posting by federal agencies of decisions and other documents that contain personal data about individuals.  CIPPIC argues that openness and accountability do not require the identification of individual applicants/appellants.

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  • CIPPIC files complaint about privacy impacts of foreign outsourcing
    - 2007-08-20 -

    CIPPIC has asked the Privacy Commissioner of Canada to investigate and report on canada.com's compliance with PIPEDA, and in so doing to clarify legal requirements for notice and consent in situations involving outsourcing of core business operations to a US-based company.  Earlier this year, canada.com outsourced its email service operations to US-based Velocity Services Inc., raising concerns about the consequent increased risk of surreptitious US government access to the email communications of canada.com subscribers.  CIPPIC has asked the Privacy Commissioner to investigate and report on whether Canadian subscribers of canada.com email services receive a "comparable level of protection" of their personal data from US-based providers as compared to Canadian providers.

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  • CIPPIC Requests Competition Bureau Review of Google-DoubleClick Merger
    - 2007-08-02 -

    In an application to the Competition Bureau, CIPPIC has requested a review of the proposed merger between Google and DoubleClick. CIPPIC is concerned that the merger prevents or lessens competition substantially in the online targeted advertising market, as Google-DoubleClick will be able to manipulate the market to raise advertising prices and advertisers and web publishers will have to choose Google-DoubleClick in order to be visible in the e-commerce market.

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  • Copyright Board Rules iPods to be Levied (Again)
    - 2007-07-20 -
    The Copyright Board of Canada has ruled that digital audio recorders such as iPods may be subject to a levy under Canada's private copying regime. The decision stands in stark contrast to a 2004 decision of the Federal Court of Appeal, reversing the Board's earlier decision to levy iPods, stating that such devices are not media leviable under the regime. The Board went on to comment that "cellular phones and computers" that are "ordinarily used by individual consumers to make private copies" are potentially leviable, adding weight to the argument that the act of making a copy of a song to a hard drive through the use of a file-sharing service does not infringe copyright. The decision will likely be appealed.
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  • Supreme Court decision a blow to online consumers
    - 2007-07-13 -
    In a decision released today, the Supreme Court of Canada rejected arguments made by CIPPIC and others that retailers should not be allowed to deny consumers the right to sue, through terms of sale imposed on consumers. The court further held that mere hyperlinking to such terms via the retailer's website, without bringing them to the attention of consumers, is sufficient to make them binding on consumers. Consumer groups swiftly denounced the decision, calling on legislatures to fill in the breach. CIPPIC News Release PIAC News Release
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