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23 J.L. Inf. & Sci. 50 (2014-2015)
Real and Substantial Connections: Enforcing Canadian Privacy Laws against American Social Networking Campaigns

handle is hein.journals/jlinfos23 and id is 56 raw text is: Real and Substantial Connections: Enforcing Canadian Privacy Laws Against American Social Networking Companies COLIN J BENNETT*, CHRISTOPHER A PARSONS AND ADAM MOLNAR Abstract Any organisation that captures personal data in Canada for processing is deemed to have a 'real and substantial connection' to Canada and thus fall within the jurisdiction of the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC). What has been the experience of enforcing Canadian privacy protection law on US-based social networking services? We analyse some of the high-profile enforcement actions by the Privacy Commissioner. We also test compliance through an analysis of the privacy policies of the top 23 SNSs operating in Canada and through the use of access to personal information requests. Our analysis suggests that non-compliance is widespread, and is explained by the countervailing conceptions of jurisdiction inherent in corporate policy and technical system design. Introduction Canadian influence over global privacy and data protection standards has been, and remains, important. The former Federal Privacy Commissioner, Jennifer Stoddart, has been widely praised for her international leadership on the issue. Furthermore, Canadian regulators have had some success in enforcing compliance with Canadian privacy law against some of the largest information brokers, including Google and Facebook. In a speech in 2011, the Assistant Privacy Commissioner, Chantal Bernier, attributed Canadian leadership in this area to Canada's hybrid privacy regime, its bilingualism, its bijurism (the blend of common law and civil law traditions), its multiculturalism, and to the independence of its provincial and federal information and privacy commissioners.' At the same time, the Canadian privacy regime is now increasingly pressured by the internationalisation of data collection, sharing, and retention, particularly by social networking services (SNSs), which are largely based in the United States. Canadians are prolific users of SNSs, with 60 per cent of Department of Political Science, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC Canada. <cjb@uvic.ca>; <www.colinbennett.ca>. Chantal Bernier, 'Canada's Role and Influence in the Global Privacy Arena' (Address delivered at the AccessPrivacyH Conference, Toronto, 3 June 2011) <http://www.priv.gc.ca/media/sp-d/2011/sp-d_20110603 cb-e.asp>. EAP I

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