Government is using surveillance in data dive, Ethics committee told

A panel of academics reiterated that the Privacy Act and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) need to be updated to reflect changes in the cyber landscape, the House of Commons Ethics Committee heard on Monday. Those calls echoed remarks made before the committee by Ontario’s former privacy commissioner, Ann Cavoukian. Professors David Lyon and David Murakami Wood, both of Queen’s University, and Christopher Parsons of the University of Toronto were the latest group to offer their comments on mobility data collection by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC). The agency has been monitoring de-identified aggregate data since 2020 through a contract with Telus Corp. and Blue Dot Corp. The subject came to light when a request for proposal (RFP) appeared in late December to extend the surveillance. Originally the deadline for application would have denied MPs the chance to review PHAC’s actions but that deadline has been extended twice already. The committee recommended to the House of Commons that the RFP be suspended until the committee has time to complete its review. That recommendation passed. In his opening remarks, Lyon disputed the government’s claim that using de-identified data meant that Health Canada was not surveilling citizens. “Surveillance is whatever makes people visible,” he stated. Wood said the manner in which PHAC is using the data is not in and of itself a violation of human rights. But there is no guarantee that the information cannot be re-identified by the agency or other government bodies. Parsons said any re-identification would not violate the current terms of the Privacy Act. “There is a lack of transparency by all levels of government,” Wood maintained. He labeled the Privacy Act and PIPEDA “out of date” and suggested a modernization along the lines of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the European Union. Bloc Québécois MP René Villemure helped to draft the GDPR before being elected to Parliament. Parsons pointed out that when introducing COVID measures in March 2020 Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam said there would be no mobility data surveillance. PHAC later changed that stance. The whole situation is “chaotic”, the U of T professor said. Under questioning from the committee, Lyon said that while PHAC’s intentions are something all can agree on, there is a danger that the process could be extended. Asked if the safeguards currently in place are adequate, he tersely replied “No.” Wood told the MPs that governments need data in order to formulate public policy. He pointed to the long form census and the uproar that occurred when the Harper government changed the criteria. But use of any information must be restricted. “That does not mean data can be used as the government sees fit,” he warned. Parsons pointed out that the Privacy Commissioner of Alberta had chastised Telus for its handling of sensitive consumer information. He reminded the members that a previous version of the committee had studied the Privacy Act and suggested they go back and review that committee’s findings. Parsons himself recommended that companies get meaningful consent from their clientele before discharging data. The Privacy Commissioner of Canada should be appraised and approve of government actions such as PHAC’s. Commissioner Daniel Therrien told the MPs earlier that he had offered to advise on the RFP but was rebuffed by the agency. In the later session of the committee Alain Deneault of the Université de Moncton said surveillance is a “totalitarian tool.” “The data could be used and possibly could be misused,” he asserted. He warned of the dangers of the information "Big Data" is storing on private citizens. He told the MPs he spent part of his life in East Germany when it was still a communist state. “That is nothing to what Google and Microsoft have on us.” Deneault downplayed the COVID crisis, saying he believes it is an endemic, not a pandemic. Situations like the PHAC data dive could have been avoided if the health system were fully funded, he added. The sitting was abbreviated by a vote in the House of Commons. The committee will next meet on Thursday when Telus and Blue Dot are scheduled to appear. –Reporting by Paul Park at ppark@thewirereport.ca and editing by Michael Lee-Murphy at mleemurphy@thewirereport.ca

Government is using surveillance in data dive, Ethics committee told

News | February 14, 2022

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Government is using surveillance in data dive, Ethics committee told

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