OPC happy with tracing app, but not with privacy law

In a letter to shadow ministers, Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien assures opposition MPs that the COVID-19 tracing app launched by the federal government does conform to federal privacy law. In his letter, sent Aug. 20 but posted online Friday, Therrien says that while the app is well-designed with privacy safeguards and data protection, the roll-out of the app highlights the need for new privacy legislation. "While proper design choices have largely been made in the case of the COVID Alert application," Therrien writes in the letter, "the fact remains that our existing legislative framework for privacy is outdated and does not sufficiently deal with the digital environment to ensure appropriate regulation of new technologies." Appended to the letter, the OPC has included a chart showing that Canadian trading partners have incorporated many of the legislative privacy reforms Therrien has been calling for, among them the codification of privacy as a human right and order making authority. The chart shows that many of Canada's trading partners have adopted more stringent privacy legislation, and have updated their laws more recently. Back in May, Therrien told the House industry committee that the lack of sufficient privacy legislation would possibly hamper efforts at tracing and containing the COVID-19 virus. The OPC made the same pitch to Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault the same month. In his letter, Therrien pointed out that even though his office is pleased with the app, the government had argued the app was not subject to federal privacy law. "In this case, the government took the position that its privacy laws do not apply in light of its assertion that personal information is not collected by the application," Therrien wrote to the MPs. "Further, while the design of the application is good, and that the government has agreed to be subject to an independent review, the government was not bound to make these commitments." In the letter, Therrien provides several examples of potential updates to the privacy law, the need for which he says is highlighted by the tracing app. In addition to the definition of privacy as a human right, Therrien cites purpose limitation as a needed area of enforcement. "In the case of the COVID Alert application, it is unclear whether the law would currently prohibit organizations from seeking information residing in the application, including whether the user has received an exposure notification, as a condition of service," Therriten says in the letter. "In our view, it is another failing of our current laws that voluntariness and purpose limitation cannot be enforced clearly against third parties." Therrien also calls for mandatory consultation with the OPC and the mandated conducting of privacy impact assessments, as well as independent oversight, saying that the government consulted the OPC on the tracing app, but not because it had to by law. "The government ultimately agreed to invite our Office in a joint audit of COVID Alert, but this was after some discussion. The law should provide for independent oversight in all cases where privacy interests are at issue," Therrien wrote. When the government launched the app in late July, there was initially some confusion about whether or not the OPC had given the app its blessing. Government officials had initially refused to say whether or not they had implemented recommendations from the OPC, before the OPC said later in the day that it was happy with the app. — With reporting by Michael Lee-Murphy at mleemurphy@thewirereport.ca and editing by Adam Langenberg at alangenberg@thewirereport.ca

OPC happy with tracing app, but not with privacy law

News | August 28, 2020

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OPC happy with tracing app, but not with privacy law

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