Canada’s privacy czar and a government official are warning that a Senate bill proposing to block minors from “sexually explicit material” online could apply to streaming services such as Netflix.Philippe Dufresne, the country’s privacy commissioner, says legislators should dramatically narrow the bill’s scope to address concerns about “what will be captured.”Dufresne, along with Owen Ripley, […]

SEATTLE (AP) — A school district, a nurse, and civil rights and youth services organizations sued Thursday to block a new Washington state parental rights law that critics describe as a “forced outing” measure. A conservative megadonor backed the law, which is set to take effect in June. The Democratic-led Legislature overwhelmingly approved it, with […]

DETROIT (AP) — A Detroit police lieutenant has been placed on administrative duties after a shouting match in which he told a pro-Palestinian protester to “go back to Mexico.” The encounter Sunday outside Huntington Place in downtown Detroit where President Joe Biden was giving the keynote during an NAACP fundraiser was recorded on police body […]

Quebec newsroom leaders are calling out a new bill to protect politicians from abuse, saying the legislation is excessive and potentially stifling to democratic debate. Media companies — including The Canadian Press, La Presse, Quebecor, and CBC — said Thursday in an open letter to the government that the bill contains measures that “compromise the […]

New for 2023 FIPA sent its first national survey of Commissioners’ approaches to access regime evaluation.

FIPA continues its coalition work signing on with other civil society groups to demand proper consideration for AI regulation. 45 leading civil society organizations, experts and academics released an open letter to Industry, Science, and Economic Development (ISED) Minister François-Philippe Champagne outlining key concerns with the current draft of the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act (AIDA), currently wrapped into […]

FIPA is a member of the Right2YourFace Coalition. Facial recognition technology (FRT) is a type of biometric recognition technology that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to identify individuals through their facial features. FRT functions by extracting biometric information based on key facial features and makes comparisons between live and stored biometric templates. Facial recognition software produces […]

Ensuring people are empowered to access information is central to our mandate. That’s why we’re so pleased to continue working with Courthouse Libraries BC to make sure Freedom of Information 101 is available through their Vimeo platform and updated regularly. Check out this latest material here. This is a skills training webinar for newcomers to […]

OTTAWA — The federal public safety minister says he is prepared to work with other parliamentarians to revise the Liberal government’s cybersecurity bill after civil society groups and opposition MPs raised transparency and accountability concerns. While he is open to changes, Marco Mendicino said in a recent interview the bill that was introduced last year […]

Questions about your legal rights surrounding health information post-pandemic?  FIPA has a history of considering the privacy and access issues that intersect your rights and personal health information. We originally launched www.healthinfoprivacybc.ca in 2011. Over the course of the pandemic, the site received a lot of attention. A lot has changed in the past decade. To ensure […]

A law reform activity has begun to ensure political parties respect your privacy rights. Learn more by visiting Your Political Privacy. Become part of the coalition by emailing yourpoliticalprivacy at fipa.bc.ca

The Provincial Code of Silence Award has been handed out and FIPA’s nominees have received national recognition. You can read the full press release here. Congratulations to @lisabeare, @jjhorgan and @BCGovNews for the big “win”. Only with the concerted effort of so many @BCNDPCaucus could they turn their back on public accountability. Thanks to the […]