Access and Privacy Online

This is your Access and Privacy News Summary for Saturday, June 20th. 

This week: Ottawa moves on privacy, online safety, and surveillance powers; FIPA releases new work on access rights and transparency systems; and New Brunswick’s review of its access and privacy law points to familiar questions about timeliness, recordkeeping, voter privacy, and independent oversight. 

Show Notes: https://fipa.bc.ca/nm/20260620-access-and-privacy-online 

Individual Stories: https://fipa.bc.ca/tag/2026-season-episode-25 

FIPA VoterPrivacy.ca 

• Voterprivacy.ca: www.voterprivacy.ca 

• House of Commons E-Petition: https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Sign/e-7237 

• Important: After signing this Parliamentary petition, you must confirm your email address via the reply email they send you for your signature to count. 

Support these efforts by subscribing or donating. 

Send comments to FIPAOnline@fipa.bc.ca 

Our Contributors: 

Writing: Shaun Fisk | Production: Patrick Farnsworth | Music: Breakmaster Cylinder  

Access and Privacy Online: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-online/  

News stories through the Canadian Press, Feedly, and ICLMG. 

Available through: PodBean, Apple iTunes,  YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM. ListenNotes,  Podchaser, Boomplay 

 

Join us for FIPA's Annual General Meeting held on June 25, 2026, at 5:00pm Pacific Standard Time via Microsoft Teams.  

FIPA’s 2026 AGM is an ideal opportunity to hear highlights of the Association’s work over the past year and our key priorities going forward. We will conduct regular AGM business and elect Board members.  

We look forward to seeing you there! 

AGM Notice https://fipa.bc.ca/2026-agm-notice/ 

Support these efforts by subscribing, donating, or become a member 

Send comments to FIPAOnline@fipa.bc.ca 

Access and Privacy Online: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-online/ 

News stories through the Canadian Press and Feedly. 

Available through: PodBean, Apple iTunes,  YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM. ListenNotes,  Podchaser, Boomplay  

This is your Access and Privacy News Summary for Saturday, June 13th. 

This week, voter privacy returns to the spotlight—with a major Senate report and fresh court developments in British Columbia. 

We’re also tracking Canada’s new AI strategy, proposed online safety rules for children and chatbots, access-to-information fights in Ontario and Nova Scotia, and international concerns over AI-generated images, border vetting, and institutional accountability. 

Show Notes: https://fipa.bc.ca/nm/20260613-access-and-privacy-online

Individual Stories: https://fipa.bc.ca/tag/2026-season-episode-24

FIPA Voter Privacy 

• House of Commons E-Petition: https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Sign/e-7237 

• Voterprivacy.ca: www.voterprivacy.ca  

• Donate to Help Us Reach More Canadians: https://fipa.bc.ca/pr/donate-c4/ 

Support these efforts by subscribing or donating. 

Send comments to FIPAOnline@fipa.bc.ca 

Our Contributors: 

Writing: Shaun Fisk | Production: Patrick Farnsworth | Music: Breakmaster Cylinder  

Access and Privacy Online: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-online/  

News stories through the Canadian Press, Feedly, and ICLMG. 

Available through: PodBean, Apple iTunes,  YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM. ListenNotes,  Podchaser, Boomplay 

 

This is your Access and Privacy News Summary for Saturday, June 6th. 

This week, we begin in Alberta, where new FIPA-Ipsos polling shows strong public support for enforceable privacy rules after the exposure of voter information for 2.9 million Albertans. 

We’ll also look at Alberta’s new combined ID cards, the federal lawful access bill, connected vehicle data, and several access-to-information stories that show how public records continue to shape accountability across the country. 

And before we go, we’ll turn to whistleblowing—from B.C.’s first securities whistleblower award to an Ontario court ruling on undercover investigations. 

Show Notes: https://fipa.bc.ca/nm/20260606-access-and-privacy-online 

Individual Stories: https://fipa.bc.ca/tag/2026-season-episode-23 

FIPA Voter Privacy 

• House of Commons E-Petition: https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Sign/e-7237 

• Voterprivacy.ca: www.voterprivacy.ca  

• Bill C-4 Backgrounder: https://fipa.bc.ca/bill-c-4-background/ 

• Donate to Help Us Reach More Canadians: https://fipa.bc.ca/pr/donate-c4/ 

Support these efforts by subscribing or donating. 

Send comments to FIPAOnline@fipa.bc.ca 

Our Contributors: 

Writing: Shaun Fisk | Production: Patrick Farnsworth | Music: Breakmaster Cylinder  

Access and Privacy Online: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-online/  

News stories through the Canadian Press, Feedly, and ICLMG. 

Available through: PodBean, Apple iTunes,  YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM. ListenNotes,  Podchaser, Boomplay 

This is your Access and Privacy News Summary for Saturday, May 30th. 

This week, we begin in Ottawa, where a number of major files moved forward. 

The federal government says it will amend parts of its contentious lawful access bill, while civil liberties groups continue warning that Bill C-22 could expand state surveillance without the safeguards Canadians need. 

At the same time, senators are studying Bill C-25—the federal elections bill—with political party privacy once again under scrutiny, especially in light of the Alberta voter data breach. 

And in British Columbia, the Bill 9 amendments to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act have now passed, despite significant opposition and important amendments pushed by MLAs, civil society, and the public. 

Then we turn to Alberta, where the breach involving the personal information of nearly three million voters continues to raise questions about political data, foreign influence, and whether similar risks are being created at the federal level. 

We also have a packed Ontario spotlight, with stories on freedom-of-information reversals, public protests, flood funding, endangered species records, municipal meeting transparency, domestic violence disclosure laws, and animal research oversight. 

And internationally, artificial intelligence, platform accountability, commercial location data, and civil liberties all remain at the centre of fast-moving public policy debates.  

Show Notes: https://fipa.bc.ca/nm/20260530-access-and-privacy-online 

Individual Stories: https://fipa.bc.ca/tag/2026-season-episode-22 

FIPA Voter Privacy 

• House of Commons E-Petition: https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Sign/e-7237 

• Voterprivacy.ca: www.voterprivacy.ca  

• Bill C-4 Backgrounder: https://fipa.bc.ca/bill-c-4-background/ 

• Donate to Help Us Reach More Canadians: https://fipa.bc.ca/pr/donate-c4/ 

Support these efforts by subscribing or donating. 

Send comments to FIPAOnline@fipa.bc.ca 

Our Contributors: 

Writing: Shaun Fisk | Production: Patrick Farnsworth | Music: Breakmaster Cylinder  

Access and Privacy Online: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-online/  

News stories through the Canadian Press, Feedly, and ICLMG. 

Available through: PodBean, Apple iTunes,  YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM. ListenNotes,  Podchaser, Boomplay 

This is your Access and Privacy News Summary for Saturday, May 23rd. 

This week, privacy and transparency are colliding with some of the biggest political and public policy questions in the country. 

We begin with a network update on Bill C-22, the federal lawful access bill that civil liberties groups are warning could expand surveillance powers and weaken online privacy protections. 

Then we turn to Alberta, where the voter list breach continues to grow in significance—with new reporting on U.S. political technology links, court filings, safety risks for domestic violence survivors, and unanswered questions about how the personal information of nearly three million Albertans was exposed. 

Across Canada, we look at privacy disputes involving short-term rental addresses, migrant access to health care, workplace AI, and the sex offender registry. 

On access to information, we track Ontario’s new transparency restrictions, jail overcrowding, environmental accountability fights in Erin, climate modelling in Newfoundland and Labrador, Hydro-Québec secrecy, and Uber’s lobbying in Halifax. 

And internationally, we look at public records and accountability stories from Romania, the United States, and Michigan—where freedom of information continues to show what governments and institutions would otherwise leave hidden. 

Show Notes: https://fipa.bc.ca/nm/20260523-access-and-privacy-online 

Individual Stories: https://fipa.bc.ca/tag/2026-season-episode-21 

FIPA Voter Privacy 

• House of Commons E-Petition: https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Sign/e-7237 

• Voterprivacy.ca: www.voterprivacy.ca  

• Bill C-4 Backgrounder: https://fipa.bc.ca/bill-c-4-background/ 

• Donate to Help Us Reach More Canadians: https://fipa.bc.ca/pr/donate-c4/ 

Support these efforts by subscribing or donating. 

Send comments to FIPAOnline@fipa.bc.ca 

Our Contributors: 

Writing: Shaun Fisk | Production: Patrick Farnsworth | Music: Breakmaster Cylinder  

Access and Privacy Online: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-online/  

News stories through the Canadian Press, Feedly, and ICLMG. 

Available through: PodBean, Apple iTunes,  YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM. ListenNotes,  Podchaser, Boomplay 

In last week’s News Summary for May 16th, we at FIPA spotlighted the fallout from a cyberattack on the online learning platform Canvas, the inherent risk of education systems relying on outside platforms for essential functions, and that when one is compromised, the impact can spread across thousands of schools almost instantly. We really wanted to highlight that story, and so we’re presenting it again on the feed for your consideration.

Show Notes for May 16th News Summary: https://fipa.bc.ca/nm/20260516-access-and-privacy-online 

Individual Stories: https://fipa.bc.ca/tag/2026-season-episode-20 

Support these efforts by subscribing or donating. 

Send comments to FIPAOnline@fipa.bc.ca 

House of Commons E-Petition: https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Sign/e-7237 

Voterprivacy.ca: www.voterprivacy.ca 

Access and Privacy Commentaries: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-commentary/  

Access and Privacy Online: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-online/ 

News stories through the Canadian Press and Feedly. 

Available through: PodBean, Apple iTunes,  YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM. ListenNotes,  Podchaser, Boomplay 

In last week’s News Summary for May 16th, we at FIPA spotlighted privacy concerns regarding connected cars, namely major gaps in automakers’ privacy policies when measured against Canadian data-protection principles. We really wanted to highlight that story, and so we’re presenting it again on the feed for your consideration.

Show Notes for May 16th News Summary: https://fipa.bc.ca/nm/20260516-access-and-privacy-online 

Individual Stories: https://fipa.bc.ca/tag/2026-season-episode-20 

Support these efforts by subscribing or donating. 

Send comments to FIPAOnline@fipa.bc.ca 

House of Commons E-Petition: https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Sign/e-7237 

Voterprivacy.ca: www.voterprivacy.ca 

Access and Privacy Commentaries: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-commentary/  

Access and Privacy Online: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-online/ 

News stories through the Canadian Press and Feedly. 

Available through: PodBean, Apple iTunes,  YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM. ListenNotes,  Podchaser, Boomplay