Newsletter: July 21, 2020

Weekly News (July 21, 2020)

Compiled by Emmanuel Appiah with Sara Bannerman

McMaster University, Communications Governance Observatory

(July 15 – July 21, 2020)

Canadian News

• [PRIVACY] OPINION: Jennifer Stoddart: Quebec takes the lead in privacy law but overreaches (The Financial Post)
• [INTELLIGENCE] Federal Court finds intelligence agency displayed ‘cavalier institutional approach’ to the rule of law (CBC news)
• [PRIVACY/CONTACT-TRACING] Court challenge launched over Ontario disclosure of COVID-19 testing with police (The Globe and Mail)
• [PRIVACY/CONTRACT-TRACING] Kenney accuses Ottawa of blocking Apple, Google from improving Alberta’s contact-tracing app (The Globe and Mail)
• [INTEL OPS/PROPAGANDA] Canadian Forces ‘information operations’ pandemic campaign squashed after details revealed to top general (Ottawa Citizen)
• [MEDIA OWNERSHIP] Competition Bureau clears takeover of Torstar Corp (Financial Post)
• [INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY] Ontario to revise mandates of startup hubs, postsecondary schools to bring more innovation to Market (The Globe and Mail)
• [INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY] Canada, U.K., U.S. denounce Russian hackers for targeting vaccine data; Trying to steal research on COVID-19 (Reuters)
• [PRIVACY/SMART CITIES] All of Toronto will soon be a ‘smart city’ riddled with sensors, experts say — but who will control the data? (The Toronto Star)
• [PRIVACY] OPINION: James McLeod: Want the personal data corporations have on you?; Good luck, it’s not nearly as simple as it might sound. (The Financial Post)
• [EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS] Federal regulators were warned national alerting system could fail years before Nova Scotia mass shooting; The emergency alert system was never used during the shootings (The Globe and Mail)
• [PRIVACY/CONTACT TRACING) Opinion: Egan: Privacy and security key to contact tracing (The Financial Post)
• [TELECOMMUNICATIONS REGULATION] EDITORIAL: Time to say no to China and Huawei (Toronto Sun)
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/HEALTH DATA] Opinion: Mason and Llorian: Virtual care will revolutionize Canadian health care (The Financial Post)

International News

• [PRIVACY REGULATION] EU court cancels US data-sharing pact over snooping concerns (The Associated Press)
• [ANTITRUST/COMPETITION] Apple Tax Ruling A First Win In Looming EU Regulatory Fights (BNN Bloomberg)
• [DEFAMATION] Trump tax ruling a new front in defamation suits against him (The Associated Press)
• [TELECOMMUNICATIONS REGULATION] UK bans Huawei from its 5G network in rapid about-face (CNN Business)
• [INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY/COVID-19] Russia Is Trying to Steal Virus Vaccine Data, Western Nations Say (The New York Times)
• [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE/PRIVACY/CENSORSHIP] TikTok fails to shake off authoritarian links to Chinese state (The Guardian)
• [PRIVACY/CONTACT-TRACING] Google Promises Privacy With Virus App but Can Still Collect Location Data (New York Times)
• [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] Microsoft jettisons dozens of full-time MSN jobs in favour of artificial intelligence (The Toronto Star)

(July 15-July 21, 2020)

Canadian Security Intelligence Service

• Statement by the Director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), David Vigneault in response to a public ruling by the Federal Court
• Actions taken by CSIS to ensure it meets its obligations to the Federal Court, the Government of Canada and all Canadians
• What are activities that would otherwise constitute offences and why does CSIS need to engage in them?
• Amendments to the CSIS Act – Data Analytics
• Amendments to the CSIS Act – Justification Framework

Competition Bureau Canada

• More competition is the best way for Canadians to get cheaper cell phone plans

Communications Security Establishment

• CSE Statement on Threat Activity Targeting COVID-19 Vaccine Development – Thursday, July 16, 2020

Global Affairs

• Joint statement by the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the Honourable Harjit Sajjan, Minister of National Defence, on the Communications Security Establishment statement

Federal Court of Appeal

• [TRADEMARK] Live! Holdings, LLC v Oyen Wiggs Green & Mutala LLP– 2020 FCA 120 – 2020-07-14

Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission

• Broadcasting decision 2020-230
  [2020-07-17 11:00:00]
  APPROVED – B.C. Conference of the Mennonite Brethren Churches – Abbotsford, British Columbia – Application to renew the broadcasting licence for the low-power community-based religious television station CFEG-TV
• Telecom order 2020-229
  [2020-07-16 11:00:00]
  Bell Canada – Withdrawal of Internet Dial Minutes Service – Public record: Tariff Notices 7607 and 7607A
• Telecom order 2020-228
  [2020-07-16 11:00:00]
  Streamlined Order – The Commission approves on an interim basis the following tariff application: TELUS Communications Inc. TN 552
• Broadcasting notice of consultation 2020-227
  [2020-07-16 11:00:00]
  Call for comments on a standardized approach to monitoring linear community channels and on-demand community programming services
• Telecom decision 2020-226
  [2020-07-15 11:00:00]
  Bell Canada – Application to review and vary and stay Telecom Decision 2019-390 regarding the routing of toll-free traffic destined for the company’s toll-free telephone number customers – Public record: 8662-B2-201912618
• Telecom order 2020-225
  [2020-07-15 11:00:00]
  Streamlined order – The Commission approves on an interim basis the following tariff applications: Northwestel Inc. TN 1089, Bell Canada TN 7612, Shaw Cablesystems G.P. TN 33
• Telecom order 2020-224
  [2020-07-15 11:00:00]
  9315-1884 Québec inc. – Service charges for local service requests – Public record: Tariff Notice 12

Broadcasting

• • 2020-192– Revised Exemption Order Respecting Teleshopping Programming Service Undertakings
  • 2020-4– Revised list of non-Canadian programming services and stations authorized for distribution – Annual compilation of amendments

Telecommunications

• • 2020-66– Forbearance from the regulation of Canadian telecommunications common carriers’ international telecommunications service agreements and arrangements for the carriage of traffic into or out of Canada – Public record: 1011-NOC2019-0326
  • 2020-40– Review of the price cap and local forbearance regimes – Public record: 1011-NOC2018-0214

Microsoft

• Assuring customers about EU cross-border data flows

Twitter

• An update on our security incident

Facebook

• Making Progress on Civil Rights – But Still a Long Way to Go

Senate of Canada

• The Senate is not sitting this week.

Canadian House of Commons

• Planned & Possible sitting days this week: July 20-22

 Public Safety and National Security (SECU):

• Systemic Racism in Policing Services in Canada: July 23, 2020, 11:00am-1:00pm 
• Systemic Racism in Policing Services in Canada: July 23, 2020, 2:00pm-4:00pm 
• Systemic Racism in Policing Services in Canada: July 24, 2020, 11:00am-1:00pm 
• Systemic Racism in Policing Services in Canada: July 24, 2020, 2:00pm-4:00pm 

CRTC

The CRTC plans to issue the following decisions, regulatory policies and reports in the coming week. This list may be incomplete and is subject to change without notice.

Anticipated releases for the week of July 20-24:

Broadcasting Decisions:

Applications by various licensees to renew the broadcasting licences for various television services

• • Decision relating to the following application considered under the Commission’s Part 1 process:
  • Bayshore Broadcasting Corporation
    CFPS-FM Port Elgin – New transmitter in Tobermory
    Public record for this application: 2019-1196-7

 Open Proceedings

• CRTC Open Broadcasting Proceedings
• CRTC Open Telecom Proceedings

 Open Public Consultations:

• • Political Communications in Federal Elections (August 21, 2020 deadline)