What, exactly is proposed in the legislation?
Bill C-30, the so-called “lawful access” bill introduced in Parliament, if passed in its original form, would provide police with much greater ability to access and track information about identifiable individuals via the communications technologies that we use every day, such as the Internet, smart phones, and other mobile devices, and at times, without a warrant or any judicial authorization.
- It would easier for the police to obtain judicial approval of multiple intercept and tracking warrants and production orders, to access and track e-communications.
- Police would have new powers to obtain court orders for remote live tracking, as well as suspicion-based orders requirement telecommunication service providers and other companies to p reserve and turn over data of interest to the police.
- Requires telecommunication service providers to build and maintain intercept capability into their networks for use by law enforcement, and gives the police warrantless power to access subscriber information.
Isn’t the information the police could obtain, nothing more than the online equivalent of phone-book information?
Let's get this straight: It's not phone-book information! We must dispel the myths relating to the new powers that would enable warrantless access to much more information than an individual's address and phone number.
In total, 6 fields of identifying information could be collected about an individual in the proposed "lawful access" scheme. In my view, there's little that should be considered "lawful" about this. Indeed, the scheme could be described as a system of "Surveillance by Design" - the opposite of our Privacy by Design approach.
Don't the police need these powers to do their job?
The proposed legislation lacks proper judicial oversight, and is deficient in transparency and openness; these elements are vital in a free and democratic society. Properly supervised, surveillance powers can be invaluable to law enforcement. However, it is equally true that where individuals are subject to unwarranted suspicions, or evidence is poorly handled, or erroneous conclusions are hastily drawn, the consequences for innocent individuals can be devastating. Recent national security-related investigations make this all too clear (e.g., Maher Arar).
Is there a way to have both privacy and public safety?
We can, and must, have both security and privacy, in unison. It should not be one at the expense of the other. The true value of privacy must be recognized – and ideally enhanced, not diminished – in any effort to modernize law enforcement powers.
By proactively embedding the principles of Privacy by Design (PbD) into the development of new information technologies and systems, personal information may continue to receive the protections intended. PbD was developed in part to lay to rest the dated “zero-sum” mindset that privacy must be sacrificed for security. PbD seeks to accommodate both legitimate interests in a “positive-sum, win-win” manner, not through the “either/or, zero-sum” approach, where unnecessary trade-offs must be made.
What should the federal government do?
The federal government must be strongly urged to amend this bill, in recognition of the sensitivity of the data being collected. At a minimum, the proposed legislation should not proceed unless it contains adequate judicial authorization and accountability provisions, in order to preserve the vital elements of openness and transparency that are fundamental to Canada’s free and democratic society.
What can I do as a citizen concerned about "Surveillance by Design"?
We have an opportunity to raise awareness of this very important issue, with the goal of potentially impacting the legislation before it is re-introduced. Please join us in standing up for freedom and privacy by using our Write My MP application and ask your elected representative to call on the government to reconsider its proposed “lawful access” legislation. We have drafted a proposed letter for your use if you choose to write to your MP, in an effort to expedite this effort.
We have also created a Beware of Surveillance by Design” Facebook page that you can “Like” and share with your friends.
