Governments increasingly turn to the private sector as a source of data for various purposes. In some cases, the data that they seek to use is personal data. The public sector use of private sector personal data raises several important law and public policy concerns. These include the legal authority for such uses; privacy and data protection; ethics; transparency; and human … [Read more...] about Public Sector Use of Private Sector Personal Data: Towards Best Practices
Legislation
Consultation on revised notices regimes
The UK government has launched a public consultation on modifying the Investigatory Powers Act to “improve the effectiveness” of the current notices regimes. The consultation invites comments on the operation of the notices regime from interested groups and members of the public, without restriction — which is particularly important given that the proposal includes … [Read more...] about Consultation on revised notices regimes
Consultation on Combatting Misinformation and Disinformation
The Australian government is seeking the public's feedback on its draft Communications Legislation Amendment (Combatting Misinformation and Disinformation) Bill 2023. The new law would provide the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) with new powers to combat online misinformation and disinformation. The new powers will enable the ACMA to monitor efforts and … [Read more...] about Consultation on Combatting Misinformation and Disinformation
Public Consultation on Lawful Interception
India has become the latest democracy to contemplate legislation to undermine encryption and privacy, and has issued a consultation paper seeking public input. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has announced a "Consultation Paper on Regulatory Mechanism for Over-The-Top (OTT) Communication Services, and Selective Banning of OTT Services". One of the queries is … [Read more...] about Public Consultation on Lawful Interception
Voters left in the dark
Bill C-47 is a 408-page budget implementation bill tabled on March 28, 2023 that, as one might expect, addresses matters relating to taxation — from income tax, excise tax, and GST/HST, to increasing the air travelers security charge, and facilitating the sharing of information between the Minister of Finance, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial … [Read more...] about Voters left in the dark
Let’s Talk Federal Regulations
The Treasury Board of Canada has proposed allowing all federal regulatory organizations to incorporate internal documents "by reference" to have the same force of law as regulations, without the need to make regulatory changes each time the document is updated.If approved, civil servants will be able to revise internal documents, with the changes … [Read more...] about Let’s Talk Federal Regulations
