Federal (Canada) Privacy Decisions

An individual complained that a telecommunications company failed to obtain proper consent for using and sharing customer data with affiliates for secondary marketing purposes. The company made its privacy policy available online and in distributed documents, but did not actively draw customers' attention to it during the sign-up process, making the information difficult to find. The Assistant Privacy Commissioner found that the company did not make reasonable efforts to inform customers about how their data would be used, leading to a contravention of PIPEDA principles regarding knowledge and consent for secondary uses of personal information.

• Adequacy of consent for secondary marketing purposes
• Company's efforts to inform customers of privacy practices
• Accessibility and clarity of privacy policy information
• Reasonable expectations of customers regarding data use

The federal Privacy Commissioner investigated a complaint regarding a security company's installation of street surveillance cameras. The Commissioner found that live video feeds of individuals constituted personal information under PIPEDA and that collecting this information for commercial purposes without consent was unlawful. The company was informed that its intended public video surveillance for commercial purposes is not compliant with privacy laws.

• Definition of personal information under PIPEDA (specifically regarding live video feeds)
• Application of PIPEDA to commercial activities
• Consent requirements for collecting personal information
• Lawfulness of private sector surveillance in public spaces