The privacy commissioner of Canada (french: Commissaire à la protection de la vie privée du Canada) is a non-partisan ombudsman and officer of the Parliament of Canada. The commissioner investigates complaints regarding violations of the federal ''Privacy Act'', which deals with

personal information Personal data, also known as personal information or personally identifiable information (PII), is any information related to an identifiable person. The abbreviation PII is widely accepted in the United States, but the phrase it abbreviates ha ...

held by the

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

or the ''Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Ac''t (PIPEDA), which deals with personal information held in federally regulated

private sector The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The ...

industries. The commissioner reports to Parliament. Philippe Dufresne has served as the ninth and current privacy commissioner of Canada since he was appointed on June 27, 2022. The privacy commissioner has the authority to audit, publish information about personal information-handling practices in the public and private sector, conduct

research Research is " creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness ...

into privacy issues and promote awareness and understanding of privacy issues from the public. Since 1983, the privacy commissioner has been a seven-year

Governor in Council The King-in-Council or the Queen-in-Council, depending on the gender of the reigning monarch, is a constitutional term in a number of states. In a general sense, it would mean the monarch exercising executive authority, usually in the form of a ...

appointment made after consultation with the leaders of every political party in the Senate and House of Commons, and after the approval of both chambers. Prior to the '' Privacy Act'' of 1983, which lays out the present role and appointment process of the office, the appointment was made by the

minister of justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

on the advice of the chief commissioner of the

Canadian Human Rights Commission The Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC) was established in 1977 by the government of Canada. It is empowered under the ''Canadian Human Rights Act'' to investigate and to try to settle complaints of discrimination in employment and in the pr ...

. The privacy commissioner reports to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics.

List of privacy commissioners

There have been eight privacy commissioners since the office was established in 1977.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Privacy Commissioner of Canada Federal departments and agencies of Canada * Government agencies established in 1977 1977 establishments in Canada Officers of the Parliament of Canada Ombudsman posts

List of privacy commissioners

See also

References

External links