Proposed Online Rules Threaten Canada’s Civil Liberties

Canada’s newly proposed Internet legislation is causing an uproar all across the country.

Bill C-30 would allow the federal government to search your computer without a warrant or consent. Critics say it is a gross violation of the constitution while proponents argue it is necessary to crack down on online crime.

Public Safety Minister Vik Toews recently made headlines by saying opponents of Bill-C30, “can either stand with us or stand with the child pornographers.”

Originally dubbed the “Protecting Children From Online Predators Act,” Bill C-30 would give unprecedented new powers to Vik Toews and the federal government.

Section 34 states, “the inspectors may enter any place owned by any telecommunications service provider in which the inspector has reasonable grounds to believe there is any document, information, transmission apparatus, telecommunications facility or any other thing to which this Act applies."

Section 33 lays out who can be appointed as an inspector.

“The Minister may designate persons or classes of persons as inspectors for the purposes of the administration and enforcement of this Act."

In other words, anyone Vik Toews chooses can walk into a privately owned telecommunications company and demand your personal information, even if it is not in the context of a criminal investigation.

This includes cell phone records, hard drives, Internet history, and IP addresses. Toews and his inspectors would also determine what constitutes “reasonable grounds.”

The public backlash against the bill forced Toews to delete his twitter account, after #TellVikEverything went viral.

Despite the federal government’s decision to postpone debate on Bill-C30, it will not be going away anytime soon

The House of Commons Justice Committee will examine the bill at a later date.