Stop enacting laws that violate privacy, B.C. privacy czar tells politicians: Knowledge Driven Revolution

Municipalities should stop passing bylaws to snoop on citizens making legal business transactions, British Columbia's privacy commissioner says.

David Loukidelis said in a report issued Wednesday he's concerned about the proliferation of bylaws that require businesses to pass on personal information about their customers to police.

Laws making pawnshops and second-hand dealers turn over customers' personal information have been in force for decades, but Loukidelis is worried about an expansion of the number of businesses required to do the same.

"It should be left to the courts to issue warrants or orders to businesses to turn over customer information on a case-by-case basis where justified," Loukidelis wrote.

"It is doubtful that such bylaws are really effective and there are certainly tools that may more effectively achieve the community safety objectives that the bylaws purport to address."

Loukidelis said his office reviewed several such laws and found no measures to ensure that personal information is used properly and is protected.

For example, he said the City of Vancouver has a bylaw requiring escort agencies to let police and licensing authorities know who they employ and who their customers are.

The City of Surrey requires anyone selling pepper spray to document the name, age, race, height and weight of anyone buying the product and provide the information to police.

The City of Richmond is considering a bylaw to require scrap metal dealers to record and provide to police the personal information of individuals who bring in scrap metal.

And other municipalities have considered similar bylaws for businesses that rent mailboxes and those selling fertilizer or hydroponic equipment.

"These bylaws smack more of regulating individuals," Loukidelis wrote.

He noted most people using these services are doing it for completely innocent reasons.

"It is unlikely that individuals who deliver second hand clothing for sale by a consignment shop would expect their personal information to wind up on a nationwide police database, accessible to police agencies across Canada," he said.

Loukidelis said he passed on his concerns to the Union of B.C. Municipalities, but they were mostly unsympathetic to his argument.

The organization believes local governments should be able to enact bylaws to regulate businesses which may be associated with criminal activity.

But Loukidelis suggested the courts would likely disagree.

He said there are other tools that would achieve the same thing, be less invasive and likely more effective. He noted the province's Safety Standards Amendment Act, which came into force in June.

It requires B.C. Hydro and other electrical utilities to share domestic electrical consumption information with municipal safety authorities.

The intention is to allow safety officials to inspect residences whose electricity consumption is so high it might mean a marijuana grow-op is operating at the address.

"This new law effectively removes the point of such municipal bylaws and municipal councils, should, for this reason as well, not be passing them."

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HOME V for Vendetta - R for Reality Canadian Bird Flu Pandemic Looming ? Shill of the Week: Stephan Harper Aspartame: The Sweetest Killer Chicken Little Terrorist of the Week: Creating Fake Terrorists Shill of the Week: Paul Martin The Number 1 Reason YOU became a Slave	Stop enacting laws that violate privacy, B.C. privacy czar tells politicians WENDY COX - CP VIA theFilter.ca September 01, 2006 Municipalities should stop passing bylaws to snoop on citizens making legal business transactions, British Columbia's privacy commissioner says. David Loukidelis said in a report issued Wednesday he's concerned about the proliferation of bylaws that require businesses to pass on personal information about their customers to police. Laws making pawnshops and second-hand dealers turn over customers' personal information have been in force for decades, but Loukidelis is worried about an expansion of the number of businesses required to do the same. "It should be left to the courts to issue warrants or orders to businesses to turn over customer information on a case-by-case basis where justified," Loukidelis wrote. "It is doubtful that such bylaws are really effective and there are certainly tools that may more effectively achieve the community safety objectives that the bylaws purport to address." Loukidelis said his office reviewed several such laws and found no measures to ensure that personal information is used properly and is protected. For example, he said the City of Vancouver has a bylaw requiring escort agencies to let police and licensing authorities know who they employ and who their customers are. The City of Surrey requires anyone selling pepper spray to document the name, age, race, height and weight of anyone buying the product and provide the information to police. The City of Richmond is considering a bylaw to require scrap metal dealers to record and provide to police the personal information of individuals who bring in scrap metal. And other municipalities have considered similar bylaws for businesses that rent mailboxes and those selling fertilizer or hydroponic equipment. "These bylaws smack more of regulating individuals," Loukidelis wrote. He noted most people using these services are doing it for completely innocent reasons. "It is unlikely that individuals who deliver second hand clothing for sale by a consignment shop would expect their personal information to wind up on a nationwide police database, accessible to police agencies across Canada," he said. Loukidelis said he passed on his concerns to the Union of B.C. Municipalities, but they were mostly unsympathetic to his argument. The organization believes local governments should be able to enact bylaws to regulate businesses which may be associated with criminal activity. But Loukidelis suggested the courts would likely disagree. He said there are other tools that would achieve the same thing, be less invasive and likely more effective. He noted the province's Safety Standards Amendment Act, which came into force in June. It requires B.C. Hydro and other electrical utilities to share domestic electrical consumption information with municipal safety authorities. The intention is to allow safety officials to inspect residences whose electricity consumption is so high it might mean a marijuana grow-op is operating at the address. "This new law effectively removes the point of such municipal bylaws and municipal councils, should, for this reason as well, not be passing them." Read the full article here Broken Link? If the link to the original article is broken or has been altered you can view the article by clicking here. About KDR \| \| Home \| \| Weekly Features Archive	Weekly Features Archive
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