Canadian privacy regulators pass resolutions on the privacy of young people and workplace privacy

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Privacy of young people

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Youth have a right to privacy. Officials say all sectors, including governments and businesses, must put young people’s interests first by setting clear limits on when and how their personal information may be used or shared, the privacy authorities say. They called on their respective governments to review, amend or adopt legislation as necessary to ensure that it includes strong safeguards, transparency requirements and access to remedies for young people. They also called on government institutions to ensure that their practices prioritize a secure, ethical, and transparent digital environment for youth.

The resolution notes that while the digital environment presents many opportunities for young people, it has also brought well-documented harms, including the impact of social media on physical and mental health. Regulators say that special protections are essential for younger generations, because their information can live online for a long time, and may become a life-long reputational burden.

The resolution also calls on organizations to adopt practices that promote the best interests of young people, ensuring not only the safeguarding of young people’s data, but also empowering them with the knowledge and agency to navigate digital platforms and manage their data safely, and with autonomy. Initial steps include identifying and minimizing privacy risks at the design stage. Other recommendations include making the strongest privacy settings the default; turning off location tracking; and rejecting deceptive practices and incentives that influence young people to make poor privacy decisions or to engage in harmful behaviours.

Privacy in the workplace

With the shift toward increased remote work arrangements and use of monitoring technologies in this digital world, the privacy authorities called on governments to develop or strengthen laws to protect employee privacy. They also urged employers to be more transparent and accountable in their workplace monitoring policies and practices.

Officials say employee monitoring has undergone substantial expansion in its use, technological capabilities and application in recent years. Many employers are said to have accelerated the use of monitoring technologies as they seek new ways of tracking employee’s performance and activities on-premises or remotely, whether during work or off hours.

Although some level of information collection is reasonable and may even be necessary to manage the employer-employee relationship, officials note the adoption of digital surveillance technologies can have disproportionate impacts on employees’ privacy and can significantly impact an employee’s career and overall well-being, including heightened stress levels and other adverse mental health effects, not to mention reduced autonomy and creativity.

Officials say the resolution calls for a collective effort from governments and employers to address statutory gaps; to respect and protect employee rights to privacy and transparency; and to ensure the fair and appropriate use of electronic monitoring tools and AI technologies in the modern workplace.