GATINEAU – Bell has toned down its controversial targeted advertising program after Canada’s Privacy Commissioner said that the program's “significant impact on privacy” could result in the matter escalating to the Federal Court.
Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien made public the findings of its investigation into the program on Tuesday, noting that the program had sparked “an unprecedented” 170 privacy complaints under the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), Canada’s federal private sector privacy law, since it was first rolled out in the fall of 2013.
Known as the Relevant Advertising Program, the initiative tracks the Internet browsing habits of customers, along with their app usage, TV viewing and calling patterns. By combining this information with demographic and account data already collected from customers, such as age range, gender, average revenue per user, and postal code, Bell can create highly detailed profiles that enable third parties to deliver targeted ads to Bell’s customers for a fee. The program involves combining customer information from several Bell affiliates that offer a range of mobile, home phone, Internet and TV services.
While Bell agreed to make a number of changes to address privacy concerns raised during the investigation, it initially refused to implement a recommendation that it obtain express consent from customers. That is, until Commissioner Therrien’s report was released.
In the report’s news release, Therrien said that he was “disappointed that the company has not adequately addressed the critical issue of consent”, and added that he was prepared to address it “in accordance with our authorities under PIPEDA, which could involve taking the matter to the Federal Court.”
When contacted by Cartt.ca, a Bell spokesperson said that the company had decided to abide by the Privacy Commission’s decision including the opt-in approach. “We’re dedicated to protecting customer privacy and thank the commission for clarifying the rules”, said Jason Laszlo, in an emailed statement.
The Privacy Commissioner’s findings were applauded by The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) and the Consumers’ Association of Canada (CAC). The two consumer groups filed a formal complaint with the CRTC in January 2014 about Bell’s Relevant Advertising Program.
“There is no question that what Bell is doing, and how Bell is doing it, is inappropriate and today’s findings recognize that,” said John Lawford, PIAC executive director and counsel, in a statement. “We look forward to the CRTC’s decision on our complaint, and are optimistic that the CRTC will impose further constraints on telcos looking to try to monetize the confidential information they collect from their customers as they communicate through the network.”
Behaviourally targeted advertising is an emerging business trend that the Privacy Commissioner’s office pledged to monitor closely.
“This is not something exclusive to Bell,” Commissioner Therrien continued. “We will be reaching out to other organizations that are engaged in or considering this type of activity, including the wider telecommunications sector, as we believe others could benefit from our findings in this investigation.”
Bell’s Laszlo added that the rules must also extend to international companies operating in Canada “…like Facebook and Google, to ensure a fair and competitive marketplace.”
