Privacy Commissioner of Canada Launches Consultation on Online Tracking

Canada's Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart wants to consult Canadian citizens about online consumer tracking:

"In the practice of online consumer tracking, data about the browsing habits of individuals is collected through digital markers such as cookies. Additional data may be gathered using other technologies, such as deep packet inspection and the global positioning systems (GPS) common in many mobile communications devices."

"Individuals themselves, moreover, volunteer significant amounts of personal information, especially through their participation in social networking sites (...)"

"Proponents say that online consumer tracking, profiling and targeting supports free Internet content, allows people to receive more relevant advertising and discount offers, and promotes the development of useful services ... "

"Critics, however, warn that people may be unaware that their personal information is being collected, and do not understand how it is used. They also argue that, even when the information is anonymous, it can sometimes be combined with other information to identify individuals."

Interested people can send written submissions until March 15, 2010. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner is also seeking to recruit people to participate in formal discussion panels in Toronto in April and Montreal in May.