ETHI Committee Report
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Mr. Pierre-Luc
Dusseault, M.P. Dear Colleague: On April 23, 2013, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics requested that the government table a comprehensive response to the recommendations included in its fifth report, entitled Privacy and Social Media in the Age of Big Data. On behalf of the Government of Canada and, pursuant to Standing Order 109 of the House of Commons, I am pleased to respond to the Committee’s Report. I thank the Committee for taking on this important study. The Government of Canada agrees with the Committee that privacy protection and a digitally literate population are vital to maintaining trust and confidence in the online marketplace, and to the growth of the digital economy. The recommendations fall into three themes: compliance guidance directed at social media and data management companies; education and outreach activities to promote safe online activities and privacy protection; and support for digital literacy. Compliance Guidance Recognizing the role played by multiple stakeholders in ensuring that social media technologies respect the privacy of Canadians, the Committee made specific recommendations to the Privacy Commissioner of Canada to establish various guidelines directed at social media and data management companies. The Privacy Commissioner, who has a legislated public education mandate related to privacy, has provided ongoing guidance and education material to organizations, including social media companies, to help them develop compliant privacy practices. Of particular note, the Commissioner and her counterparts in Alberta and British Columbia have published guidelines on accountability for organizations. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) has also prepared guidance and interpretation bulletins on responding to access requests and on ensuring accuracy of information. Guidance materials related to obtaining online consent and data disposal are also being developed by the OPC. Education and Outreach Activities Research conducted under the Privacy Commissioner’s Contributions Program directly supports education and outreach initiatives related to privacy. Since 2008, the Commissioner’s Contributions Program has funded over a dozen digital literacy and privacy literacy projects, many of which have focused on youth online privacy. In addition, the Commissioner has endeavoured to foster an open dialogue on privacy literacy by, for example, holding an armchair discussion on youth privacy and digital literacy, and by funding a day-long privacy camp. In recent years, the OPC has placed a particular emphasis on educating youth about the relevance and importance of privacy when using social media and other digital technologies. In 2012–13, it undertook an outreach campaign targeting educators and librarians to encourage them to use its many resources in this area, including a graphic novel entitled Social Smarts: Privacy, the Internet and You. This novel aims to help young Canadians to better understand and navigate privacy issues in the online world. The government recognizes the importance of working with various partners from the public, private and voluntary sectors to make Canadians better aware of the importance of protecting their privacy and security online and to build trust and confidence in the online world. To this end, the government supports the Committee’s recommendation directed at social media and data management companies to play a larger role in promoting safe and active online activities that protect the privacy and personal information of individuals, particularly in regard to vulnerable groups such as children and youth. With respect to the Government of Canada, officials from four federal departments and agencies sit on the board of MediaSmarts, a charitable organization dedicated to digital and media literacy. MediaSmarts has also received support from the Privacy Commissioner for the development of privacy-related lesson plans for classrooms; to conduct an international comparative study on digital and privacy literacy programs; and for a number of other research projects on digital literacy. The website fightspam.gc.ca is an example of the Government of Canada’s own commitment to helping individuals and businesses protect themselves from spam and other online threats. As well, in 2012, the government launched the Get Cyber Safe national public awareness campaign to educate and raise awareness of online threats and to assist Canadians in taking the necessary steps to protect themselves online. An important element of the Get Cyber Safe campaign is Cyber Security Awareness Month, which occurs every October. Both the Get Cyber Safe campaign and Cyber Security Awareness Month are important elements of Canada’s Cyber Security Strategy. The Strategy aims to help Canadians to be secure online and seeks other important objectives related to national cyber security. Cyber Security Awareness Month has proven to be a great success, due in no small part to the joint efforts of government and business leaders from Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. As well, proposed amendments to the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), which are before the House of Commons under Bill C-12, will directly support and encourage privacy literacy, especially among youth and other vulnerable individuals. These proposed amendments to PIPEDA will require organizations to better communicate their intentions when collecting individuals’ personal information online, thereby ensuring that they are able to understand what is being done with their information. Digital Literacy Digital literacy and skills are at the core of what is needed for individuals to succeed in today’s online economy. In this regard, the government makes significant investments in skills development programs, including those that target digital literacy. For example, Budget 2011 announced that Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) would reallocate $60 million to support digital skills and enrolment in key disciplines, including science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). A number of important initiatives arise from the Budget 2011 reallocation. For example, Skills Link is dedicating up to $10 million annually over three years (2011–14) for projects to support digital skills development among disadvantaged youth. Digital Jobs of Tomorrow has received nearly $1 million for a project carried out by the Canadian Coalition for Tomorrow’s ICT Skills, a group of information and communications technology (ICT) industry leaders, in conjunction with the Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC). In 2011, the project launched the CareerMash website and career awareness activities for schools and students to promote ICT career awareness. HRSDC also provided both core and project-specific funding to the ICTC to contribute to the development of a digitally skilled workforce and improved ICT labour market intelligence. As well, up to $4 million over two years was committed for a digital skills competition to improve awareness of ICT-related education and training programs, while $9 million of the HRSDC Skills and Partnership Fund is being invested over three years to encourage and support the training and employment of Aboriginal people in the ICT sector. In its March 28, 2013 Response to the Report of the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities, entitled Labour and Skills Shortages in Canada: Addressing Current and Future Challenges, the Government of Canada stated that ensuring that Canada has the skills and labour force it needs now and in the future is one of the greatest socio-economic challenges facing the country. It further recognized that this will require not only concerted action, but also innovative thinking, approaches and partnerships. In view of this, as announced in Economic Action Plan 2013, the government is taking steps to address these labour market challenges by partnering with provinces and territories, employers and other stakeholders to target skills development investments in high-demand areas. The Response also recognized the shared responsibility for Canada’s labour market success, which requires multiple stakeholders to play important roles in this respect. Provinces and territories, which are responsible for education, have a central role to play in developing digital literacy and skills. The government will continue to work with its provincial and territorial partners to develop tomorrow’s digital workforce. The Government of Canada is committed to protecting the privacy of Canadians and fostering an environment that will enable individuals and businesses to participate, innovate and contribute to the growth of the digital economy. Yours sincerely, The Honourable Christian Paradis, P.C., M.P. |