Following a recent complaint, an investigation is underway into the collection of personal data through the federal government’s ArriveCan app and the data’s subsequent usage, Canada’s federal privacy watchdog confirms.
“Our office has received and is currently investigating a complaint that raises concerns with respect to the collection of personal information through ArriveCAN and subsequent use of that information,” the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) told The Epoch Times in an email.
“As a result, we are not in a position to offer comment.”
Launched as a voluntary app in April 2020, ArriveCan was made mandatory on Nov. 21 of that year for travellers boarding flights to Canada. Then in March 2021, the app was extended to include travellers arriving at land border crossings.
In June, the Trudeau government announced that the app would remain mandatory until at least Sept. 30. Meanwhile, Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino has indicated that ArriveCan will outlast the pandemic as part of a strategy that aims to shrink border bottlenecks.
The complaint and resulting OPC probe was first reported by Global News on July 28. However, the privacy commissioner’s office declined to answer the media outlet’s questions about who made the complaint, when it was made, and how long the investigation might take. The office similarly declined to answer these questions when The Epoch Times requested comment.
Call for Investigation
Over the last two years, privacy and technology experts as well as parliamentarians have raised concerns about ArriveCan’s collection of personal data and the ways in which the data would be stored and used.Conservative MPs Pierre Paul-Hus, Matt Jeneroux, and Michelle Rempel Garner wrote to the OPC on July 29, 2020, asking it to investigate the app over potential misuse of data among government agencies by sharing Canadians’ personal information without their consent.
In his Aug. 20, 2020, response, the privacy commissioner said he had no concerns after reviewing the app’s privacy terms.
“It is our understanding that disclosures to provincial and territorial public health units and law enforcement agencies in Canada are a necessary component of the quarantine process under the Quarantine Act,” the commissioner said.
The Epoch Times sought clarification from the OPC as to whether the current complaint was related to the Conservatives’ request.
“I can tell you, the two matters are different,“ the OPC replied. ”We responded to the inquiry from shadow ministers in August 2020.”
Oversight and Accountability
Global News learned about the complaint and resulting probe from technology expert Bianca Wylie. Wylie has been closely tracking developments surrounding ArriveCan and had emailed an information request to the OPC asking for the commissioner’s position on the mandatory use of the app.Wylie has raised concerns about a lack of oversight and accountability for an app that holds people’s sensitive information, and has said that its use should be voluntary.
In a tweet on July 14, Wylie shared a screenshot of her email to the OPC, asking the office to clarify its position on the app’s mandatory use, while also mentioning that the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) is “conflating the requirement to collect data under the Quarantine Act with the required use of a mobile/web app.”
“As an office that helps support government oversight and accountability for responsible use of technology, the silence of your office has been somewhat of a surprise. It would be helpful to receive an update on your office’s position regarding ArriveCAN,” Wylie wrote.
She shared the OPC’s response on Twitter on July 27, in which the office provided the same response as that received by The Epoch Times, saying it was currently investigating a complaint and therefore unable to comment.
In addition, the OPC’s reply to Wylie stated that PHAC has engaged with its office about ArriveCan and it has provided the agency with recommendations. The reply also noted, “Our last annual report included some information about our early consultations,” and referred Wylie to look under the heading “Public Health Agency of Canada - Canadian border enhancements in response to COVID-19” in the December 2021 report.
The report said the OPC has also advised the Canada Border Services Agency throughout the process. It said its recommendations to PHAC and its partners included putting measures in place to prevent the over-collection of travellers’ personal information and ensuring that the data collected was relevant to the monitoring and enforcement of quarantine rules set by the feds.
Wylie criticized the OPC on July 28 for not having performed its job well to safeguard Canadians’ privacy.
Writing on Twitter, she said that “one mode of public oversight we have for ArriveCAN is federal privacy commissioner. first, they’ve been helping Public Health Agency of Canada on the app without challenging mandatory use. now they’ve gone quiet because they are investigating a complaint.”
The Epoch Times contacted PHAC for comment, to which the agency replied that it continues to work with the OPC “whenever questions regarding personal information collected by the PHAC are raised.”
“Given that this appears to be a reference to an ongoing investigation and consultations by the OPC, we do not have further comment at this time,” PHAC said.
The Canadian Press contributed to this report.
