As part of the federal election campaign, Option consommateurs is calling on the political parties to make firm commitments to better protect consumer privacy.
Canada's privacy laws were adopted at a time when digital technologies were still in their infancy. Today, these laws are no longer adequate to the task.
To adequately protect the public, Option consommateurs is calling for a bill to modernize the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act within the first year of the new government. This bill should include the following elements:
Measures to prevent data breaches for Canadians
The privacy of Canadians has never been so threatened. Corporate security breaches are multiplying, exposing millions of people to identity theft. To protect consumers, Canadian law must be amended to prevent these situations. For example, pre-market verification obligations should be imposed on connected objects, which present numerous cybersecurity flaws. The law should also oblige companies to take privacy principles into account right from the design stage.
Tighter regulation of technology companies
Technology giants are constantly collecting data from Canadians and using it for commercial purposes, without the public being clear about how this data will be used or to whom it will be disclosed. The law should ensure that consumers are adequately informed about the practices of these companies, and that they can object to their tracking when it's not necessary.
Better protection for children's privacy
From an early age, children's information ends up on the servers of technology companies. To protect this vulnerable group, the use of children's data for commercial purposes should be prohibited. Similarly, minors should have the right to digital forgetting, so that youthful mistakes or publications made by their parents do not penalize them for the rest of their lives.
Increased powers and resources for the Office of the Privacy Commissioner
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner, the federal agency responsible for enforcing the Electronic Documents and Information Protection Act, has no enforcement powers against companies that fail to comply with the law. In order to effectively defend the privacy of Canadians, this agency must be given the power to issue orders and impose monetary penalties.
Information: 514 777-6133