Expansion of Police Powers to Spy on Canadians
Despite the Supreme Count ruling that people have a "reasonable expectation of privacy," Bill C-2, the Strong Borders Act, demolishes any such expectation. It provides further proof that rights in Canada are merely privileges that can be given and taken away at the whim of the state. Creating the conditions where rights belong to people by virtue of their being human requires enacting a modern constitution which enshrines these rights and makes sure it is the people who define the state, not the state which defines the people.
Bill
C-2 will empower agents of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service
(CSIS) and the Communications Security Establishment (CSE), police
officers and peace officers, including border agents, corrections
officers and "special constables," to expand the surveillance of the
people by the
Canadian state. It will do so by compelling "service providers,"
particularly electronic service providers -- such as internet and
cell phone providers -- to divulge private information about their
clients without obtaining a judicial warrant. The warrant is supposed
to guarantee due
process related to criminal investigations, but now, with no crime
committed and no warrant, private information will be given to the
policing agencies and shared with the U.S.
The amendments to the Criminal Code are also egregious. They introduce what is known as "warrantless" information demands from the state and its police agencies. These would compel a service provider to divulge a great deal of personal information about a client with no prior judicial authorization.
These "warrantless" information demands include but are not limited to details such as whether a service provider has provided services to a particular subscriber or client; whether the service provider has any transmission data from the user, and other details; and if anyone else is providing services to the user.
Bill C-2 also adds a new definition of "subscriber information" in the Criminal Code. The Supreme Court has defined "subscriber information" as "the name, address, and telephone number," and more recently "contact information" associated with an individual IP address.
Bill C-2 proposes a broader definition for "subscriber information" than can currently be demanded through judicial warrants. Bill C-2 says "subscriber information" includes any information that the subscriber or client provided in order to receive the service. This includes pseudonyms used, "identifiers assigned," account numbers, and "information relating to the services provided to the client," including types of services, when the services commenced and for how long, the types of devices used to provide such electronic services and so on. These amendments to the various laws greatly expand the scope of information provided.
Bill C-2 also expands police powers in Canada and Quebec by allowing CSIS and the police to compel a foreign company that provides telecommunication services to hand over subscriber information and transmission data when asked.
Bill C-2 will add a new law, called the Supporting Authorized Access to Information Act. This law will provide guidelines for electronic service providers to install and/or maintain technical capabilities and devices that enable law enforcement to access or extract information that is required under this omnibus bill.
Domestic service providers have up to 24 hours to respond to such demands under this law and must provide a written justification if they cannot comply. Service providers who fail to comply with information demands outlined in Bill C-2 could face significant penalties, including hefty fines and potential criminal charges. Service providers have only five days in which to file an appeal against information demands.
Other changes that infringe on privacy rights are changes to the Customs Act to require customs officials to open packages bound for export between provinces or with other countries in the context of an investigation. As well, under this proposed law, the Canada Post Corporation Act will also be amended to force Canada Post staff to open private letters in pursuit of an investigation.
Bill C-2 will also set the stage to expand the ability of the Canadian state and its police agencies to share the information and data collected from digital service providers with the U.S. and other global intelligence partners such as the Five Eyes (Canada, U.S., Britain, Australia, New Zealand) and within Canada, under changes to the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act. The changes proposed set the stage for Canada to endorse the U.S. CLOUD Act, which will force Canada to comply with requests for surveillance data by U.S. Homeland Security and other agencies.
Bill C-2 also makes amendments related to the collection and use of personal information under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act, with related amendments under the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act. These changes enable the state and its police agencies to collect and use personal information, without an individual's knowledge or consent, to share with other agencies, including internationally in the name of identifying and preventing money laundering and related criminal activities. Not only is privacy invaded but people are criminalized and put on crime databases when no crime has been committed.
Another amendment to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act, is to make it illegal for a business, profession or a charitable institution to accept a cash donation of $10,000 or more, or for a person to pay in cash for any public transaction including donations to charities.
This is another way that the Canadian state is interfering in the private affairs of the people and putting financial matters under its control. According to Payments Canada, some 49 per cent of Canadians still use cash for transactions and 27 per cent of gig workers are paid in cash.
This article was published in
Volume 55 Number 9 - September 2025
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmlm2025/Articles/M550092.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca