I have to admit, folks, that introducing the privacy news during a period when there isn’t too much mainstream media coverage about Canadian privacy issues is not without its challenges!

Does this mean there’s been a moratorium on privacy breaches in Canada? Unfortunately, I don’t think so. Does this mean there’s absolutely nothing going on? Working in this area day to day, and speaking with many privacy colleagues, I think the answer is, again, a resounding “no.”

Canadian privacy professionals are notoriously busy beavers. I know for many of you it’s crunch-time and you are tackling and addressing privacy issues related to various exciting initiatives slated to be unveiled in the early fall.

Now with a federal election slated for Sept. 20, some of you are working on questions around what will happen to legislative reforms that were underway. And if there is change in our national government, what impact could that have on these and other privacy issues?

Then, of course, there are all the debates surrounding vaccine passports, both for international travel — which in my mind is a bit more clear — and for everything else: work, play, school. I urge you to read the article below, in which Saskatchewan Information and Privacy Commissioner Ron Kruzeniski dives into some of the key questions, particularly around employment.

Another conference season is just around the corner, as well. The IAPP has a couple really good ones, including the Privacy. Security. Risk. event in October and then the IAPP Europe Data Protection Congress in November. Another one to keep tabs on this fall is the international conference of the Global Privacy Assembly — the event organized by the regulator community. The GPA is chaired by Canada’s own Elizabeth Denham, the U.K. Information Commissioner. This year, Mexico's DPA is hosting the event, and you can see the agenda is forming. I personally find it interesting to see the agenda topics because it can give us a glimpse at the issues many DPAs are focused on.

See? There’s just no rest for the weary … or is it the wicked? I think it’s neither. Canadians are keeners, so I imagine that, like me, you are busily beavering away, while hopefully carving out a deserved break before summer disappears completely.

On that note, have a great weekend!