The BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association (FIPA) is inviting all students, parents, teachers, and concerned members of the public, to join us in exploring the privacy implications of Learning Management Systems (LMS) in B.C.’s public K-12 education system. Many school boards across the province have adopted the use of LMS, including Google’s G […]

From FIPA President Mike Larsen The introduction of the amendments to B.C.’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) contained in section 22 of Bill 35 demonstrate that the government is willing to move forward on legislative reform. And as the all-party special committee who reviewed the Act in 2016 found in their […]

It is election season, and the leaders of Canada’s political parties are making promises, presenting platforms, and answering questions about plans and policies. The next Government of Canada will have to take positions on transparency reform, privacy in a digital age, democracy and Big Data, and the regulation of increasingly-intrusive surveillance practices. We want to […]

Vancouver, August 30, 2019 – Yesterday, the Information and Privacy Commissioner for BC, Michael McEvoy, issued an Order stating that BC’s privacy laws apply to the electoral district associations of federal political parties, despite their contestations. The Order affirms that all organizations in BC, including those created by federal political parties, must be held to […]

We’re calling on the provincial government to keep their promise Earlier this month, we teamed up with the BC Civil Liberties Association and created a petition to encourage the British Columbia government to keep their campaign promise of reforming the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA). This Act is as important today […]

We are asking the BC Government to keep their promise. Sign the petition for FIPPA reform today! The BC Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) was meant to help create a culture of openness and transparency within the government. Today, however, we frequently see public bodies failing to create records or destroying […]

On June 27th, 2019, at our Annual General Meeting, we’ll be presenting The Tyee with an award that recognizes their outstanding reporting related to surveillance and privacy. (More information about our AGM and registration.) As a nonprofit society, the BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association holds an Annual General Meeting. We like to make […]

In this special edition episode of our Data Subjects podcast, we revisit our Policing Info World conference. On May 23, 2019, we co-hosted a conference that explored the data behind crime, law enforcement, and surveillance. Along with department of criminology at Kwantlen Polytechnic University and the BC Civil Liberties Association, we heard from experts in law enforcement, […]

This episode continues our story on the history of BC’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act by exploring what’s gone wrong since the Act was passed. We begin in the year 1996, when a new NDP government under Premier Glen Clark is taking office in BC. You’ll hear about why former Premier Clark […]

On this episode of the show, we go back to a time before British Columbia had freedom of information or privacy laws—to the year 1990—and find out what it was like to request information from government. Then, we find out how a small group of dedicated individuals were able to advocate, draft, and ultimately bring […]

Last November, we published Carroll Anne Boydell’s analysis of BC’s new whistleblower legislation – the Public Interest Disclosure Act (PIDA) – and how it compares to international best practice standards. The study, which is currently available to download from our website, examines different legislations containing protections for whistleblowers who disclose wrongdoing in the province and […]

Data Subjects is a new podcast dedicated to issues surrounding privacy and freedom of information rights in Canada. The show marks FIPA’s first foray into the world of podcasts. Episodes will tackle a wide variety of topics, from the history of FOI in Canada, to the pitfalls of our modern privacy rights, and many more. […]