Your Access and Privacy Online News Summary for Saturday, June 13th. This week, voter privacy returns to the spotlight — with a major Senate report and fresh court developments in British Columbia.  We’re also tracking Canada’s new AI strategy, proposed online safety rules for children and chatbots, access-to-information fights in Ontario and Nova Scotia, and international […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — A key surveillance tool seen as vital in preventing terror attacks and catching foreign spies is set to expire Friday after congressional efforts to temporarily extend it failed in bipartisan fashion. It’s a significant lapse for the program known as Section 702, and even as President Donald Trump nominates a new national […]

The international aid group Doctors Without Borders found a pattern of abuse and sexual exploitation by some local and foreign staff working in Chad along the Sudanese border, in some cases targeting underage girls or trading food or jobs for sex with refugees, according to a confidential internal memo obtained by The Associated Press. The […]

Even more cameras will be keeping a watchful eye over the public, as the City’s surveillence of downtown proves to be an effective way to address public safety and protect local businesses. That was the message from Michael Magnusson, the executive director of the Penticton and Wine Country Chamber of Commerce, during a presentation to […]

Alberta’s government said Friday it has picked the University of Calgary to study potential costs of the province leaving Canada. It has also formed what it calls an expert advisory panel to review the university’s report and provide a separate assessment. The panel is led by economist Jack Mintz, a go-to expert for Alberta governments […]

Transparency is a major topic for all tiers of government and the public is ever the more curious about how officials uphold openness to scrutiny in their civil service. With the provincial government’s recent changes to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA), local officials are also keeping the subject open to […]

Ohioans soon will be required to provide a photo ID when voting by mail – a major change to a voting method that previously had been exempted from the strict voter ID requirement Republican lawmakers passed following the 2020 presidential election. Republican lawmakers unveiled the new photo ID requirement for mail voting on Tuesday, before […]

To Michael Solberg, being an Albertan and Canadian are inextricably and extraordinarily linked. “Alberta is more than just a province. It’s a place in Confederation that I think makes it great,” he said. It’s part of why Solberg is a key member of the Vote To Stay campaign, an organization comprised of various people from […]

A 13-year-old boy was charged with uttering threats last week after allegedly “threatening firearm-related violence towards students” at Sexsmith Secondary School. Clairmont RCMP said they received a complaint the night of June 4 and started their investigation by speaking with students at the school June 5, which led them to the youth who was interviewed […]

Sexual deepfakes created by Elon Musk’s Grok AI chatbot and shared on his X platform violated Canada’s privacy law — and while the company has made some changes, they don’t go far enough, the privacy commissioner said Thursday. Commissioner Philippe Dufresne said Grok’s AI image generation tool was launched without adequate safeguards and didn’t properly […]

The Conservatives and the NDP aren’t offering opinions yet on the online harms bill introduced by the federal Liberal government Wednesday. The bill includes a high-profile plan to force social media companies to ban kids under 16 from their platforms. A spokesperson for the Conservatives said the party is looking at the bill. “Protecting children […]

The vast majority of crime guns traced by the RCMP to identifiable sources in 2023 and 2024 came from within Canada and were not smuggled from abroad, say internal reports prepared by the national police force. The analyses found almost all of the long guns traced — and a substantial number of the handguns — […]