And this is why we need to repeal C-51: Federal Court judgement slams CSIS for violating privacy rights of Canadians

Today’s ruling reinforces the case for a full repeal of Bill C-51 and for stronger accountability and oversight mechanisms

In a blistering ruling dropped late on a Thursday afternoon, the Federal Court of Canada has declared that the Canadian Security and Intelligence Services (CSIS) has been illegally amassing and retaining large quantities of Canadians’ sensitive private information, including telecommunications metadata, for over 10 years.

In the ruling, Justice Simon Noel noted that CSIS should not have retained this information as it was not related to threats to the security of Canada.

His comments eviscerated CSIS for its misuse of surveillance warrants and for keeping judges in the dark about its data retention practices.

This ruling clearly shows that our current accountability mechanisms for CSIS are woefully insufficient. The fact that CSIS could go 10 years retaining large quantities of our sensitive private information, yet we're only finding out about this now – and only as a result of a court judgement – is hugely concerning. After today's ruling, the case for common sense measures to ensure accountability, transparency, and oversight of CSIS is stronger than ever.

What’s worse this shows that we’re moving in the wrong direction. The previous government abolished the CSIS Inspector-General, while also introducing a sweeping expansion of CSIS powers in Bill C-51. After today’s ruling, it’s clearer than ever that Bill C-51 must be fully repealed, and that we need a complete overhaul of our privacy safeguards to ensure they make sense in a digital age.

The judge noted in his ruling that “the public must be knowledgeable about their [CSIS] tools of operating,” and OpenMedia is making a number of specific recommendations to the ongoing government and parliamentary national security consultations designed to ensure that, including:

• Canada needs a review body modelled on SIRC that is adequately funded and empowered to fully review the human rights-impacting activities of all Canadian agencies, including CSE, CSIS, the RCMP, and CBSA.

• Reinstating the office of the CSIS Inspector General

• Creating a review body modelled on SIRC that is adequately funded and empowered to fully review the human rights-impacting activities of all Canadian agencies, including CSE, CSIS, the RCMP, and CBSA.

• Cross-parliamentary oversight of all government agencies carrying out surveillance activities must be independent and premised on access to all information necessary for assessing the effectiveness and proportionality of such activities.

• Repealing the expansion of powers for CSIS in Bill C-51. CSIS should not be given powers more suited to law enforcement.

• Amending the CSIS Act to ensure that all CSIS activities must comply with the Charter, must not unduly impact on free expression, individual reputation, or privacy, and must not undermine the integrity of general communications networks.

Already thousands of Canadians are calling on the government to repeal Bill C-51 and introduce strong privacy rules to keep us safe from surveillance at SaveOurSecurity.ca. If you haven’t yet, today’s ruling gives you one more reason to join with them and put the rights of Canadians front and centre in the ongoing National Security review.