CIRA poll finds Canadians support new privacy laws and cyber attack prevention measures

The Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) has found Canadians show strong support for new laws to protect privacy and prevent cyber attacks following a survey it commissioned for its “Canadians Deserve a Better Internet” report. CIRA -- a not-for-profit organization which manages the .CA internet domain -- released the findings of the poll Wednesday. “An overwhelming majority of Canadians support a crackdown on harmful content on social media platforms and also want to give the Privacy Commissioner new powers to help safeguard personal information,” its release stated. “The days of the ‘anything-goes’ internet are behind us. Hate speech, fake news, and cyber attacks are rampant, and have undermined Canadians’ trust in the open web,” CIRA CEO Byron Holland said in the release. “The largely unregulated internet has driven incredible innovation, but this has come with significant costs.’ According to the poll done for CIRA by The Strategic Counsel, 77 per cent of the 1,254 internet users surveyed earlier this year said they support the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) getting new powers to help protect their personal information, including making orders and issuing fines. The poll did indicate this is down a bit from 82 per cent in 2020. Of the respondents, 84 per cent are “at least somewhat concerned” that businesses willingly share users’ personal data with third parties without consent, and most said they are not willing to trade their personal data in exchange for better products and services. Earlier this month, Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien said Bill C-11, the federal government’s proposed update to the private sector privacy law, “arguably gives more weight to commercial interests than the current law.” He said that provisions in C-11 as drafted give organizations increased flexibility to use personal information without consent, and not a corresponding increase in accountability as “one would expect.” When it comes to illegal content online, 85 per cent of poll respondents said social media platforms should be expected to play a role in its removal from their platforms and 79 per cent said they support a new law requiring social media to remove illegal content within 24 hours of being flagged. However, 62 per cent are concerned about the potential removal of legitimate lawful speech. Such a concept for a potential anti-online harm regulator is in the works. Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault has said five categories of illegal online activities would likely be dealt with in the first iteration of the bill, which would regulate content posted online. They are hate speech, content exploiting children, terrorism, violent content, and the non-consensual sharing of intimate images. The House of Commons Ethics Committee has been studying the protection of privacy and reputation online, specifically related to Mindgeek’s Pornhub as it was accused of hosting illegal content — including content featuring children, and how to hold them accountable. Seventy-four per cent of CIRA survey respondents supported credit card companies prohibiting use of their cards on PornHub. On the topic of online news funding, 58 per cent of respondents supported new funding for news, but only 52 per cent support the idea of forcing social media platforms to pay news publishers when it hosts links to their content. The results indicated there is equal support for requiring platforms to collect GST/HST and fund news from general revenue. After fighting arguments that platforms should be forced to compensate news outlets, Facebook Inc. announced Tuesday it is partnering with 14 Canadian publishing groups to participate in its “News Innovation Test,” which is said is a new initiative to “help promote a healthy news ecosystem, elevate authoritative journalism, and deliver a valuable experience for people on Facebook who are interested in news.” Facebook will pay the publishers to link to news stories not already posted on Facebook, “helping us experiment with ways to enhance the experience for people on the platform who are looking for trusted Canadian news about important topics.” In addition to news, just over half of respondents or 59 per cent support “action to stimulate the creation of Canadian content,” which also falls under the debate over Bill C-10, the government’s update to the Broadcasting Act. CIRA said support is strongest for requiring foreign-owned online services to collect GST/HST and direct some of those funds towards CanCon, as selected by 56 per cent of respondents and closely followed by 54 per cent being in favour of redistributing funds from the government’s upcoming wireless spectrum auction. As for blocking websites used to launch cyber attacks, 84 per cent of people who responded to CIRA’s survey supported ISPs blocking those sites -- but half agreed it’s “an extreme measure that should be used as a last resort.” The issue of site-blocking has been a contentious one, as rights-holders in Canada — including some of the country's largest vertically integrated telecom companies and broadcasters — have pursued various efforts to achieve some level of site-blocking. The federal government has launched a consultation document to solicit feedback on whether or not it should allow internet service providers to unilaterally block certain websites from users in order to protect copyright holders. Three-quarters of those who responded to the survey are also in favour of the government providing resources and infrastructure to Canadian businesses to help protect them from cyberattacks. A majority or 67 per cent support government spending to fund cybersecurity infrastructure for Canadian businesses, while 66 per cent are concerned about potential cybersecurity risks from foreign-owned network technologies and 64 per cent support the use of AI for blocking illegal content online, but not for other purposes. The survey also asked people to weigh in on their home internet services. Thirty-three per cent of people said they believe their household received the “up to” internet speed included in their home internet package all or most of the time, while 20 per cent said they rarely or never receive it. Meanwhile, 26 per cent of people don’t know. Just over 80 per cent of people said it is important to test publicly-funded internet projects once they’re completed to make sure they deliver promised speeds. About three-quarters or 77 per cent believe it is important that Canada’s internet service providers and online service companies invest in building up internet infrastructure inside Canada’s borders. As part of its 2021 budget, the federal government is plowing another $1 billion dollars into its Universal Broadband Fund for high-speed internet projects across the country over the next five years, bringing the total fund up to $2.75 billion. According to the budget document released in April, the government will spread the additional $1 billion over five years starting in 2021-2022, with more than half of it—some $616 million—front-loaded in the first two years. -- Reporting by Hannah Daley at hdaley@thewirereport.ca and editing by Jenna Cocullo at jcocullo@thewirereport.ca.

CIRA poll finds Canadians support new privacy laws and cyber attack prevention measures

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CIRA poll finds Canadians support new privacy laws and cyber attack prevention measures

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