Canada’s proposed new privacy law
Last week, we celebrated the creativity and business success of Canadian marketing campaigns at the CMA Awards Show and Gala, with more than 1,500 registered guests.
And while part of our team was focused on perfecting every detail of this outstanding immersive experience, others were focused on ensuring Canada has the right fundamentals in place to help Canadian businesses achieve success.
If you’ve been reading the news, you’ll know that the Canadian government tabled new privacy rules last week. Bill C-11, which was introduced on Tuesday, is the first major attempt to change Canada's privacy law in decades. If the bill is ultimately adopted, Canada’s current law that governs how we use personal information – PIPEDA – will be replaced by a new Consumer Privacy Protection Act (CPPA).
For marketers, using personal information in a smart and responsible way – whether it’s collected from consumers directly or indirectly – helps us to do a better job of reaching and serving people. Good privacy practices contribute to a positive customer experience, which benefits brands by building trust.
Bill C-11 has some welcome improvements for marketers – like new proposals to reduce our reliance on consent. But is also has some changes that will take some getting used to – like new rights for consumers to request that a company delete their personal information, or even port it to a competitor.
The proposed penalties are higher too. In fact, with a maximum of 5% of global revenue or $25 million, they’re intended to be the highest in the G7.
At this point, we don’t know what the final law will look like. One thing we do know is that there will be a lot of lead-up time before Canadian privacy rules change, including an “implementation period” of up to 18 months after the bill becomes law.
As Bill C-11 undergoes review and debate by the House of Commons and the Senate, we will be your advocate, working to ensure a regulatory environment that enables marketers to serve consumers effectively.
In the meantime, to learn more about the proposed changes that are most relevant to marketers, take a look at the blog and preliminary overview of Bill C-11 that we published on the day that it was released.
Stay well,
John Wiltshire
President and CEO
P.S. Check out my recent Marketing Connected LIVE session with Bruce Powell on how to adapt to and survive the seismic shift in executive search and recruitment resulting from the pandemic.
