You're definitely living in the right Province, Geoff.... Btw, how far are you from Flin Flon?
Benefits of enhanced driver's licences don't outweigh privacy risks: commissioner
CP - Sat Mar 14, 12:41 PM EDT By Chinta Puxley, The Canadian Press
Saskatchewan's decision to put the brakes on high-tech driver's licences shows their benefits don't outweigh the invasion of people's privacy, according to one of Canada's top privacy watchdogs.
Chantal Bernier, assistant privacy commissioner of Canada, is applauding the province's decision to back away from the enhanced licences until legislation addresses concerns about how personal information is used and how vulnerable it is to hackers.
"It's highly significant," Bernier said in an interview with The Canadian Press. "The province seems to come to the conclusion ... that the cost-benefit analysis is not convincing."
Intruding on a person's privacy is only justified when the benefits outweigh the risks, she said. And more people seem to be coming to the conclusion that concerns associated with enhanced driver's licences don't justify going ahead with the cards in their current form.
The high-tech licences - which are being brought in by Ontario, British Columbia and Manitoba - are intended to be used as identification instead of passports at U.S. land border crossings. Starting in June, all travellers crossing into the United States by land or sea, including American citizens, will need a passport or an acceptable alternative.
In response to concerns from Saskatchewan privacy commissioner Gary Dickson, that province temporarily pulled proposed legislation this week that outlined how the licences would work.
Most of the privacy questions revolve around the card's embedded radio-frequency identification chip.
The chips, which can be read by electronic scanners up to 4.5 metres away, contain a unique identifying number for each card holder. Border officials can scan the chip and use the number to locate the personal information of the card holder, including name, birth date, gender, citizenship and other information that is ordinarily also contained in a passport.
But the licences are also vulnerable to hackers, privacy experts suggest. Unless a card is in a protective sleeve or has an on-off switch, there is nothing to stop someone from scanning the licence remotely without the knowledge of the cardholder.
Some privacy advocates are also concerned the chips could be used to secretly track Canadian citizens.
Michael Geist, Canada research chair in Internet and e-commerce law at the University of Ottawa, said awareness of the pitfalls is growing across Canada, and many provinces are taking a "wait-and-see approach" since the U.S. is not yet enforcing new identification requirements at the border.
"One can understand given some of the backlash that we've seen in other provinces why some provinces might prefer to take a wait-and-see attitude," he said.
Alberta has already ruled out bringing in an enhanced driver's licence.
Service Alberta Minister Heather Klimchuk said there isn't enough "land-based" traffic to justify the cost and two-thirds of Albertans who travel to the U.S. go by airplane, which already requires a passport.
British Columbia brought in enhanced licences last year, while Ontario passed legislation allowing the province to issue the high-tech licences and photo identification cards.
Manitoba residents can now apply for an enhanced card, which comes with a protective sleeve to deter hackers. Quebec and Nova Scotia are also looking at similar cards.
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