Canadian Patriot Act back as bill C-12

If you’ve followed this blog for some time, I first wrote about the introduction of the bill in May 2010, and then a follow up redux in August 2010 (a summary of a few key points). It was officially called Bill C-29 which has just been re-introduced as a new Bill C-12 and is on the order paper for discussion today [PDF]. You can read the legislative summary here. This is the most important of privacy related legislation in Canada, so it’s worth paying attention to.

“Bill C-12: Safeguarding Canadians’ Personal Information Act – Eroding Privacy in the Name of Privacy” – Tamir Israel

“C-29: The Anti-Privacy Privacy Bill” – Michael Geist

“The report recommends that Bill C-12, An Act to amend the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, be significantly toughened to require all data breaches be reported promptly to the Federal Privacy Commissioner, who in turn should have the power to order companies to notify individual consumers when there is a real risk of significant harm to them. The report also recommends Bill C-12 be amended to give the Privacy Commissioner of Canada order-making power to enforce the requirements and a fining power for non-compliance.” – Public Interest Advocacy Centre