This being the last Digest for 2017, I’m tempted to do a year-in-review. But, these days, you can’t look sideways without seeing that sort of thing so I’m trying to come up with a different theme to send you off onto your holidays with good wishes.

Hopefully, you’re not a Nissan driver. Their holiday card in the mail is a notice saying your information has been breached. But don’t worry, you get a year’s worth of credit monitoring. Ho Ho Ho.

On a more serious note, I did want to pause and reflect on 2017 just a bit. It was a huge year for our industry. Most of the thanks can probably go to the Europeans for passing GDPR, but even here in Canada we’ve seen movement and progress with meaningful amendments to our federal freedom to information law (which will hopefully pass in the new year) and other noteworthy advancements on the privacy-side of things.

I think 2018 will be equally challenging and as fast-paced. I predict the talk about Canada’s adequacy will gain momentum, with all stakeholders raising their voices a bit. I also think that 2018 will set a new standard in terms of breach reporting in Canada and I’m curious if organizations subject to PIPEDA and our regulator are ready for it. Mostly, I think our industry will continue to be interesting and an important challenge worth investing in.

I hope you have a very nice holiday season. See you in the New Year!