Ontario Privacy Commissioner Calls for Ontario Action on ID Theft

Ontario's Privacy Commissioner, Ann Cavoukian, has called on the Ontario Government to take legislative action against identity theft. In issuing this challenge, the Commissioner's statement was apparently prompted by an earlier call by the Ontario Minister of Government Services for legislative action by the federal government to require banks and retailers to notify customers when their data has been compromised. Said the Commissioner on this topic,

"I greatly respect [the Government Services] Minister … but, in my view, he is ill-advised here. I have been writing to the Minister for the past three years … to bring in made-in-Ontario legislation that would address breach notification, as well as other crucial privacy issues".

Although three of Canada's largest provinces (British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec) have already enacted private-sector privacy legislation, Ontario has not. Said the Commissioner in a press release,

"Ontario should be taking responsibility for bringing in its own legislation … that will address Ontario's privacy needs, including a key provision to require breach notification".

In July 2005, the Ontario Government sought public input on how best to prevent identity theft and directed interested parties to comment on a working paper of the Consumer Measures Committee (a committee comprised of representatives from the federal, provincial and territorial governments), a copy of which can be found at: http://cmcweb.ca/epic/site/cmc-cmc.nsf/en/fe00097e.html For a copy of the Commissioner's press release dated February 6, 2007, visit: http://www.ipc.on.ca/images/Resources/up-2007_02_06_idtheft.pdf Summary by: The Editor