Friday September 29 The Theatre at UBC Robson Square Campus Vancouver, BC BC’s Freedom of Information Act, passed in 1992, was designed to make BC’s government more open and accountable. That was the theory then; what is the reality today? Has FOI really made the government more transparent and accountable? Has it empowered citizens? Is […]

Privacy advocates are questioning the use of CIA-funded software to manage Canadian medical records. Software that will help sort millions of Canadian health records was developed by a company funded through the CIA’s venture capital partner, sparking concerns about the confidentiality of patient data. Privacy advocates are raising questions about Canadian use of the Initiate […]

The 36,000-strong association representing Canada’s lawyers is calling on the federal government to take action against a “trend” of cyber spying by Internet service providers. The Canadian Bar Association crafted a letter to three federal cabinet ministers after Bell Sympatico, Canada’s largest ISP, amended its service agreement with customers three weeks ago to reserve the […]

BC FIPA has made its submission on the Federal Accountability Act, Bill C-2 to the committee reviewing the legislation. BC FIPA offers 10 recommendations regarding the Act, including increasing the powers of the Information Commissioner, expanding the coverage of the Access to Information Act, creating a duty to document, strengthening public interest provisions, increasing protection […]

FIPA and the BC Civil Liberties Association have joined forces to oppose a blatant move by the BC Liberals to assert strict Cabinet control over future public inquiries. On April 24, the BC government introduced Bill 23, a revamped Public Inquiry Act, which radically changes the rules for inquiries. Historically, the law required public inquiry […]

Vancouver Sun columnist Vaughn Palmer reports that the B.C. Liberals have rebuffed two requests to include the $100-million New Relationship Trust under freedom of information and protection of privacy legislation. Both requests came from David Loukidelis, the province’s information and privacy commissioner. “We are not inclined to do what he has asked,” said Tom Christensen, […]

The British Columbia government has auctioned off computer tapes containing thousands of highly sensitive records, including information about people’s medical conditions, their social insurance numbers and their dates of birth. Included was information about such things as HIV status, mental health and drug usage. Sold for $300 along with various other pieces of equipment, the […]

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has released a public notice asking for input on the development and operation of a National Do Not Call List (DNCL) and on telemarketing rules. Anyone interested in commenting without participating in the full public process, may do so in writing via mail, fax, or on a web-form […]

On January 23, for the first time in 20 years, a Canadian federal election may deliver real reform in government transparency and accountability. The ruling Liberals, as a result of the sponsorship scandal, were forced to introduce some half-hearted transparency measures in 2005, but there is a strong national consensus that much more needs to […]

Weekly privacy news briefs from around the world – October to December 2005: Privacy News Highlights – 13 Oct 2005 Privacy News Highlights – 20 Oct 2005 Privacy News Highlights – 27 Oct 2005 Privacy News Highlights – 10 Nov 2005 Privacy News Highlights – 23 Nov 2005 Privacy News Highlights – 1 Dec 2005 […]

BC’s Freedom of Information Act is in dire need of updating and strengthening. A formal review of the act completed in 2004 should have yielded improvements, but the government has taken a puzzling detour. A Special Committee of the Legislature conducted a comprehensive review of the FOI act in 2004 and submitted a report with […]

The federal government got a lot more than it asked for when it commissioned former Supreme Court justice Gerard La Forest to study whether or not the offices of the federal Information Commissioner and Privacy Commissioner should be merged. Although these offices are merged in some provinces, it was not entirely clear what was pushing […]