Post Tagged with: "lawful access"

The Lawful Access Legislation: Does it Really Criminalize Linking & Anonymity?

The government’s plans to include lawful access provisions within its omnibus crime bill has attracted mounting attention in recent days as many commentators express concern that the legislation could create criminal liability for linking to content that incites hatred and for using anonymous or false names online. The concerns started at the Free Dominion site and have since spread to Brian Lilley at the Toronto Sun and Jesse Brown’s blog at Maclean’s.

As I have argued for a long time, there are many reasons to be concerned with lawful access. The government has never provided adequate evidence on the need for it, it has never been subject to committee review, it would mandate disclosure of some personal information without court oversight, it would establish a massive ISP regulatory process (including employee background checks), it would install broad new surveillance technologies, and it would cost millions (without a sense of who actually pays). Given these problems, it is not surprising to find that every privacy commissioner in Canada has signed a joint letter expressing their concerns.

Yet while lawful access raises many issues (such that it clearly does not belong in an omnibus bill placed on the fast track), I do not believe that creating criminal liability for linking or anonymous speech are among them.

May 11, 2011 — 26 comments — News

Government Reaffirms Plans for Lawful Access

Public Safety Minister Vic Toews yesterday re-affirmed the government’s commitment to passing lawful access legislation within 100 sitting days.

May 10, 2011 — 5 comments — News

“An Attack on Our Liberty”

Plans to include lawful access bills within the Conservative omnibus crime bill has begun to attract some negative attention. The issue has been much discussed on Free Dominion, where there are particular concerns about potential liability for linking to hate material. The Toronto Sun’s Brian Lilley calls the bill an […]

May 9, 2011 — 3 comments — News

The Conservatives Commitment to Internet Surveillance

This post, which focuses on the Conservatives commitment to pass lawful access legislation that would fundamentally reshape the Internet in Canada within the new Parliament’s first 100 days if it wins a majority, requires two caveats. The first is to emphasize that I believe digital policies are not a partisan issue. Developing a digital economy strategy, introducing balanced copyright, addressing cybercrime while preserving privacy is not a left or right, Liberal or Conservative, issue.

The second is to note that all the major parties have strong and weak points on digital issues:

the Conservatives passed anti-spam legislation, defended fair dealing reform on C-32, and pressured the CRTC on the usage based billing issue (they also failed to strike a balance on digital locks and include a digital economy strategy in their platform)
the Liberals made a strong commitment on digital policies in their platform, were the first to focus on open government, and called for changes to the digital lock rules (they also failed to take a stand on foreign investment in telecommunications and had MP Dan McTeague openly working with CRIA on an anti-consumer copyright policy)
the NDP were the first to draw attention to consumer issues on copyright, to commit to net neutrality, and to take a stand on UBB (they also are strong supporters of an iPod levy).

While there are good and bad with each party, the Conservatives new commitment to lawful access – new laws that would establish massive Internet surveillance requirements and the potential disclosure of personal information without court oversight – is incredibly problematic for the Internet, privacy, and online freedoms. It requires real debate yet seems likely to slip under the public radar.

April 9, 2011 — 70 comments — News

Lawful Access Bills Would Reshape Internet in Canada

The push for new Internet surveillance capabilities goes back to 1999, when government officials began crafting proposals to institute new surveillance technologies within Canadian networks along with additional legal powers to access surveillance and subscriber information. The so-called lawful access initiatives stalled in recent years, but my weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) notes that earlier this month the government tabled its latest proposal with three bills (C-50, C-51, C-52) that received only limited attention despite their potential to fundamentally reshape the Internet in Canada.

The bills contain a three-pronged approach focused on information disclosure, mandated surveillance technologies, and new police powers.

November 16, 2010 — 85 comments — Columns