Critics fear cyberbill may ease snooping
OTTAWA — The federal government has been accused of using the emotionally charged issue of cyberbullying to try to give police new powers that would make it easier to snoop on Canadians’ Internet use.
The government has rejected the allegation, while the parent of one teen who committed suicide two years ago after being bullied has called on parliamentarians to pass the proposed law quickly to protect other teens and children.
But the charge foreshadows a potentially sharp political battle and could delay what most agree is an important change.
The Protecting Canadians from Online Crime Act, which was unveiled by the Conservative government this week, would make the distribution of sexually explicit images without a person’s consent a criminal offence. The proposed law, also known as Bill C-13, follows the high-profile suicides of several teenagers across the country who faced cyberbullying, including Nova Scotia teen Rehtaeh Parsons and B.C. teen Amanda Todd.
But the bill also includes other provisions that touch on terrorism, organized crime and hate propaganda, and it would give police new tools to track telecommunications and investigate a variety of Internet crimes.
Elements of the new legislation were originally contained in bill C-30, the Internet snooping bill that was scrapped last year amid public outrage over privacy concerns and then-public safety minister Vic Toews’ contention that anyone opposing the bill was on the side of child pornographers.
Ontario Privacy commissioner Ann Cavoukian said in a statement this week that “it is very troubling to see the government once again trying to enact new surveillance powers under the guise of protecting children.”
Cavoukian acknowledged that the new bill removes some of the more contentious aspects of bill C-30, including giving police warrantless access to Internet subscriber information, and that most of the proposed powers will be subject to some form of judicial oversight.
“Nonetheless,” she said, “C-13’s surveillance powers leverage new and still evolving technologies. As a result, they significantly increase rather than merely maintain the state’s surveillance capacity.”
In an interview Friday, Justice Minister Peter MacKay rejected suggestions the cyberbullying bill was C-30 “in sheep’s clothes.”
“This bill goes directly to the heart of a very serious issue of young children in particular being bullied, harassed and intimidated to the point that they were taking their own lives,” he said.
MacKay acknowledged that some provisions go farther than cyberbullying, but he said the government saw “the opportunity to increase some other electronic communications provisions.”
“These amendments are about how we arm the police, give them the tools to go after online crime,” he said.
“Bringing in a law that helps update police investigative tools into the 21st century to me makes perfect sense.”
Allan Hubley, an Ottawa city councillor whose son Jamie committed suicide in 2011 after being bullied, said while the privacy commissioner may harbour concerns about the legislation, the comprehensive nature of the law will “unmask” cyberbullies who hide behind anonymity online.