Access and Privacy Online

Access and Privacy Online


Major meeting on Terrapure

At a meeting that brought together several governmental authorities to share information on Terrapure last Friday, Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) grand chief Cody Diabo demanded a greater say for Kahnawake when it comes to industrial activities in the region. “I told them they are still guests on our land, and quite frankly they are […]

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One Tech Tip: All you need to know about the iPhone’s Lockdown Mode

A little known security feature on iPhones is in the spotlight after it stymied efforts by U.S. federal authorities to search devices seized from a reporter. Apple’s Lockdown Mode recently prevented FBI agents from getting into Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson ‘s iPhone. Agents seized the phone, as well as two MacBooks and other electronic […]

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20260214 Access and Privacy Online

Your Access and Privacy Online News Summary for Saturday, February 14th. Bill C-4 was the focus of our attention this week. We’ll have a brief update here with links in the show notes and a special edition to come. On top of that policing is under increased privacy and information scrutiny as a sweeping corruption scandal in Toronto has led to charges against eight current and former officers […]

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Actor takes legal action to stop Albania’s government from using her image for ‘AI minister’

PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Albania introduced what it called the world’s first artificial intelligence minister last year. Turns out she wasn’t entirely artificial — at least not her face and voice. Albanian actor Anila Bisha says those belong to her — and she never imagined the government would use her image so prominently. Now Bisha, […]

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Group calls for region to drop Wilmot land group, pointing to a list of problems

A newly released 135-page report is renewing scrutiny of the Region of Waterloo’s efforts to assemble roughly 770 acres of farmland in Wilmot Township for a proposed mega industrial site, a project that has remained largely opaque for more than two years and has sparked widespread opposition across the rural community. The report, published in […]

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A privacy breach at the IRS: Taxpayer data wrongly shared with DHS, court filing says

WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS erroneously shared the taxpayer information of thousands of people with the Department of Homeland Security, as part of the agencies’ controversial agreement to share information on immigrants for the purpose of identifying and deporting people illegally in the U.S, according to a new court filing. The revelation stems from a […]

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House GOP pushes strict proof-of-citizenship requirement for voters ahead of midterm elections

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans rushed to approve legislation on Wednesday that would impose strict new proof-of-citizenship requirements ahead of the midterm elections, a long shot Trump administration priority that faces sharp blowback in the Senate. The bill, called the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, or SAVE America Act, would require Americans to prove they are […]

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Nova Scotia Power introduces new president and CEO as regulator readies for inquiries

Nova Scotia Power announced on Tuesday that current president and CEO Peter Gregg will be departing his current role and taking on a new position within Emera Inc., the utility’s multinational parent company. Gregg will officially be replaced by incoming president and CEO Vivek Sood, a Nova Scotia Power board member who also has 20 […]

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Manitoba government mulls grocery price measures as inflation continues

The Manitoba government launched a study Wednesday aimed at keeping groceries affordable, although it’s unclear how data would be collected and whether one of its main topics is a reality in the province. The study, promised in the NDP government’s throne speech in November, is to look at issues such as differential pricing — a […]

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Patrick Brown can’t explain how his pared down shell-game budget will be funded; 4.36% tax increase almost double the inflation rate

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown, who has left a trail of controversy on each stop of his tumultuous political career, just pushed through a now approved 2026 financial blueprint that delays critical infrastructure work, lacks spending on major city building projects like the downtown flood plan, leans heavily on new debt and relies on unsecured grant […]

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Nova Scotia Power names new CEO as cyberattack scrutiny continues

Nova Scotia’s private power company has named a new chief executive as the utility deals with fallout from last year’s cyberattack and seeks a widely criticized hike in power rates. Nova Scotia Power says current president and CEO Peter Gregg will leave his post on March 1 to become vice-president of strategy and policy with […]

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Privacy activists call on California to remove covert license plate readers

More than two dozen privacy and advocacy organizations are calling on California Gov. Gavin Newsom to remove a network of covert license plate readers deployed across Southern California that the groups believe feed data into a controversial U.S. Border Patrol predictive domestic intelligence program that scans the country’s roadways for suspicious travel patterns. “We ask […]

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