Dufresne pledges to continue Therrien’s work as Privacy Commissioner

Incoming Privacy Commissioner Philippe Dufresne vowed to stay the course, following the example set by his predecessor Daniel Therrien. Dufresne appeared before the House of Commons Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics which was vetting his nomination Monday. The nominee said it is important to update the two major pieces of privacy legislation, the Privacy Act and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). “This is a very important time for privacy and this is one of the many reasons why I was interested in being commissioner,” Dufresne told the committee members. “There needs to be modernization of the two primary privacy laws, the Privacy Act and PIPEDA. Parliamentarians will have a role to play, the commissioner will have a role to play and stakeholders as well.” He told the committee his current role as Law Clerk for the House of Commons, combined with his past experience at the Canadian Human Rights Commission, makes him suitable for this new role. His work at the rights commission was more of an advocate’s position while he had to be more discreet as a law clerk. When the government gets around to re-introducing its online harms bill, Dufresne expects to have comments. “I would be more proactive in expressing views in terms of what legislation should be. As law clerk I would not be doing that,” he stated. He plans to consult with the government, the private sector and the Canadian public about the facets of any new legislation. People must have assurances their privacy will be respected, he said, and industry needs practical codes so it knows what is and is not permissible. Some privacy breaches are unacceptable, some data may be accessed with consent while other data, such as for health concerns, may not need prior consent. The government should ensure that the next iteration of the bill is rights-based. “I think human rights and privacy rights are fundamental,” Dufresne stated. “Privacy rights have been recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at the same time we had a recognition of human rights.” He was grilled on many of the issues which Therrien faced over his term, including the use of facial recognition technology, data collection by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), and geolocation by the Tim Hortons app. Therrien had testified that he offered his counsel to PHAC but it was rejected. Dufresne stepped gingerly into the matter when questioned about it. “ did say he offered those services and the government chose to use their own experts,” the new commissioner said according to simultaneous translation from the French. “I do think that commissioner Therrien said it was legitimate for the government to do that…. In regards to trust, I do think it created some doubt.” He agreed with Therrien that the commissioner’s office needs to have its budget increased. Foreign nationals will soon be able to access government files on themselves so Dufresne expects a surge in cases in his office. “I see the OPC as being a centre of excellence for all things related to privacy,” he asserted. Dufresne seemed wary of digital identification. He wants to see the technological aspects of it before recommending the government proceed with any new regime. He praised the work being done in other jurisdictions, specifically citing Quebec’s Bill 64 and the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation. Asked about working with his provincial counterparts, he sounded hopeful. “I would expect and commit to work very collaboratively with those colleagues. They do fundamentally important work and there are some areas of parallels with PIPEDA,” he noted. Following his testimony, the committee considered a motion to recommend Dufresne’s appointment as Privacy Commissioner to the House of Commons. The motion passed unanimously. –Reporting by Paul Park at ppark@thewirereport.ca and editing by Jenna Cocullo at jcocullo@thewirereport.ca.

Dufresne pledges to continue Therrien’s work as Privacy Commissioner

News | June 13, 2022

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Dufresne pledges to continue Therrien’s work as Privacy Commissioner

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