What’s a “Connected Car”? “Connected Cars” are vehicles that use wireless communications to send data from the vehicle to external computers and/or service providers. What are “telematics”? Vehicle telematics are computer systems that automatically combine a car’s data with global positioning satellite (GPS) tracking and wireless communications technologies to enable a wide range of services […]

  FULL REPORT | EXECUTIVE SUMMARY | FAQS | PRIVACY ANALYSIS The BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association (FIPA) has released a year-long study on privacy, consumer choice and onboard vehicle technology. The Connected Car: Who is in the Driver’s Seat? was written by privacy lawyer Philippa Lawson and generously funded by the Office […]

One year’s work of research is culminating in the release of “The Connected Car: Who is in the Driver’s Seat?” next week. The full report will be online on Wednesday, March 25th 2015. For a preview article written by Dan Fumano and published in the Vancouver Province, click here.

Bill S-4 would amend the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). FIPA calls for political parties to be covered by the law and makes other recommendations. Click here to download FIPA’s submission to the Committee on Industry, Science and Technology on Bill S-4, delivered in Ottawa on March 10, 2015.  

Originally published in the Times Colonist, March 8 2015 In January, Prime Minister Stephen Harper told the audience at the campaign-style announcement of Bill C-51, the Anti-terrorism Act, that “the international jihadist movement has declared war on Canada.” As the broad definitions of “terrorism,” unclear purposes, lack of oversight and the other many disturbing aspects […]

The BC government’s new Government Information Act takes some useful steps to preserving information, but it has a big hole and also takes a major step backward. http://www.leg.bc.ca/40th4th/1st_read/gov05-1.htm#section18 The biggest problem is that it contains no duty to document. Recently several freedom of information requests come back with not a single piece of information attached. […]

The BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association is continuing its battle to protect freedom of expression during elections in this province. The latest round in FIPA’s Charter challenge to the BC Election Act was heard by the BC Court of Appeal on Friday, February 13, 2015. Links to court documents in this case can […]

To read FIPA’s factum, click here To read FIPA’s reply factum, click here To read the factum of the respondent (the Attorney General of BC), click here To read the BC Civil Liberties Association’s (BCCLA) intervenor factum, click here

BC FIPA presented our recommendations to the Special Committee to Review the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) on October 16, 2015. Download our written submissions via the links below, or learn more about the Committee and its statutory review of the Act here. Our main written submission Our letter introducing supplementary submissions Supplementary […]

The BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association has requested that Information and Privacy Commissioner Elizabeth Denham conduct an investigation into a new BC government policy of not posting embarrassing reports. In a letter to the Commissioner, BC FIPA cited the government’s refusal to post either the McNeil report into the mysterious Ministry of Health […]

Download letter now Complaint letter to Commissioner Denham re BC government refusing to post reports.  

Originally published in Huffington Post We can’t say 2014 was a banner year for Access to Information in this country. According to the Centre for Law and Democracy, which publishes a ranking of countries that have right to information laws, Canada continues to drop and is now down to number 57 (out of 100). And […]