Several big Canadian corporations and organizations, including Indigo, Sobeys, and the LCBO, have suffered computer breaches in recent months. Moreover, recent trustworthy research estimates that the average data breach costs Canadian businesses $5.64 million, with just 39% of organizations employing adequate protection capabilities. The data demonstrate why, in the long term, Canada requires stricter legislation to comply with the standards to maintain businesses, avoid heavy fines, and build customer trust.

This article will explain how Canadian law protects your data and what can you do about it to ensure your information stays private.

How Does a VPN Protect You? 

There was a 206% surge in VPN use among Canadians. A virtual private network, or VPN for short, like ExpressVPN, is a tool that ensures more privacy by diverting your internet connection through an encrypted tunnel. It can help to keep your data in traffic protected from anyone who may try to intercept your connection and get their hands on your valuable data.

What Exactly is the GDPR?

Businesses collect personal data for a range of reasons. Cookies and form submissions are monitored for information, including IP and email addresses. In the EU, GDPR regulates how companies use customers’ personal information. Implementing data protection standards ensures that private data is treated ethically, legally, and transparently.

Even though legislation only applies to EU people, GDPR might impact your Canadian business. All businesses, including those outside the EU, who offer services or products to people who live in the EU are subject to this rule.

You have to follow GDPR if:

• EU visitors are monitored on your website using cookies and IP addresses.
• You are employed or live in the EU.
• Your company offers goods or services to customers in the EU.
• Your business collects data from EU residents and processes it for clients.
• Visitors from the European Union come to your website.

What is the PIPEDA Act?

The Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act governs private sector data privacy in Canada and is enforced by the Officer of the Privacy Commissioner or OPC. The PIPEDA intends to protect internet users’ privacy rights by requiring businesses to get users’ consent before collecting, using, or revealing their users’ personal information. Companies that breach the PIPEDA may face fines of up to $80,000 if the government decides to take legal action.

What is CPPA?

The Consumer Privacy Protection Act (CPPA) of Canada is a new law in Canada’s digital privacy laws. Its aim is to replace the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), which has existed for over two decades. It is the most significant revision to Canada’s private sector privacy law in the last 20 years.

Canada’s Consumer Privacy Protection Act (CPPA), implemented through the more comprehensive Digital Charter Implementation Act, would strongly emphasize providing customers control over their data and encourage increased transparency on how businesses utilize data, including personal identifiers.

Conclusion 

Because of the world’s expanding data traffic, which frequently contains private information, legislators in several countries, including Canada, have realized the importance of improving legislation to protect people’s privacy rights. The primary goal is to avoid data leaks and hacking, which will assure information accuracy, limit its distribution, and allow customers to access and challenge the integrity of the data. Until data privacy laws are more strictly enforced, use security services like VPN to secure your connection and password tools like 1Password to secure your logins.

Last Updated on August 23, 2023 by Sanjana