[Privsec] Copyright and Technological Threats to Privacy - Open Letter

[Robert Guerra]

I would appreciate any support individuals and/or organizations
subscribed to this list can give this open letter.


regards

Robert


>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


Canada’s Privacy Community Releases Open Letter, Background Paper on
Copyright and Technological Threats to Privacy

Privacy Commissioners of Canada, Ontario and British Columbia Release
Own Letters of Concern


Ottawa, ON – May 17, 2006 – A group of public-interest oriented
organizations and privacy and civil liberties experts have released an
open letter to the Ministers of Canadian Heritage and Industry along
with a Background Paper detailing their concerns over how proposed
changes to Canadian copyright law implicate privacy, freedom of
expression and civil liberties.  The open letter focuses on dangers to
privacy posed by the extension of legal protection to “digital rights
management” (DRM) technology.

In separate letters of support, the Privacy Commissioner of Canada,
Jennifer Stoddart, the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British
Columbia, David Loukidelis, and Dr. Ann Cavoukian, Ontario’s Information
and Privacy Commissioner, each wrote to Minister of Canadian Heritage
Bev Oda and Industry Minister Maxime Bernier to express their concern
with the privacy implications of DRM technology.

“The Canadian government has not publicly consulted on the privacy
implications of possible copyright reforms,” notes CIPPIC staff counsel
David Fewer.  “The signatories to the open letter argue that the
infamous Sony BMG ‘rootkit’ DRM demonstrates that their privacy concerns
are well-founded, and that the time has come for the Canadian government
to consider ‘copyright law reforms that would protect Canadians from the
use of DRM’, and not ‘reforms that would provide protection for DRM.’”

Mr. Fewer adds that the Commissioners’ letters signal the seriousness
with which they view the privacy issues associated with DRM.  “The time
to address these issues is now, before we see a copyright bill – not
during review in Committee.”

The Privacy Community’s open letter seeks assurances from the government
that:

(1)     any proposed copyright reforms will prioritize privacy
protection by including a full privacy consultation and a full privacy
impact assessment with the introduction of any copyright reform bill;

(2)     any proposed anti-circumvention provisions will create no
negative privacy impact; and

(3)     any proposed copyright reforms will include pro-active privacy
protections that, for example, enshrine the rights of Canadians to
access and enjoy copyright works anonymously and in private.

The open letter and Background Paper have been posted at the group’s
website at www.intellectualprivacy.ca.

About Canada’s Privacy Community: The signatories to the letter include
some of Canada’s best known public-interest organizations and leading
academic privacy experts.  Signatories include:

Association for Media and Technology in Education in Canada
Atlantic Provinces Library Association
BC Civil Liberties Association
BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association
BC Library Association
Colin Bennett, Professor of Political Science, University of Victoria
Canadian Association of University Teachers
Canadian Federation of Students
Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic
Canadian Library Association
CLUE : The Canadian Association for Open Source
Consumers Association of Canada
Electronic Frontier Canada
Electronic Frontier Foundation
FLORA.org
Michael Geist, Canada Research Chair of Internet and E-commerce Law at
the University of Ottawa
Marsha Hanen, Adjunct Professor of Philosophy, University of Victoria
Ian Kerr, Canada Research Chair in Ethics, Law & Technology at the
University of Ottawa
Library Association of Alberta
Online Rights Canada
Ontario Library Association
Bruce Phillips, Former Privacy Commissioner of Canada (1991-2000)
Privaterra
Pubic Interest Advocacy Centre
Teresa Scassa, Director of the Law and Technology Institute and
Associate Professor at Dalhousie Law School
Val Steeves, Professor, Faculty of Criminology, University of Ottawa
Paul Van Oorschot, Canada Research Chair in Network and Software
Security, at Carleton University

About CIPPIC: CIPPIC is the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest
Clinic, Canada’s only technology law clinic. CIPPIC was established in
2003 at the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Common Law Section.
CIPPIC’s mandate is to advocate for balance in policy and law-making on
issues arising out of new technologies.

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For Further information, see:

www.IntellectualPrivacy.ca

Canada’s Privacy Community Open Letter:

http://www.intellectualprivacy.ca/documents/open_letter.pdf

Canada’s Privacy Community Background Paper:

http://www.intellectualprivacy.ca/documents/background_paper.pdf

Letter of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada:

http://www.privcom.gc.ca/media/let/let_ca_060517_e.asp (english)
http://www.privcom.gc.ca/media/let/let_ca_060517_f.asp (french)

Letter of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British Columbia:

http://www.oipc.bc.ca/news/Letters/F06-28751.pdf

Letter of Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commissioner:

http://www.ipc.on.ca/docs/drm-letter.pdf

For further information, contact:

David Fewer
Staff Counsel
CIPPIC, the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic
(613) 562-5800 ext. 2558
dfewer at uottawa.ca