Privacy experts concerned about Canada's forthcoming vaccine passport
The federal government is working on a national vaccine passport -- what that will look like and how it could be used is not yet known -- but privacy experts are concerned about how the information would be gathered.
“It’s not just going to be used for travel. People are talking about vaccine passports to get into concerts, to get into baseball games, football games, I mean all kinds of activities globally,” said Ann Cavoukian, executive director of the Global Privacy and Security by Design Centre.
The Toronto Maple Leafs playoff game in May is one example of a major sporting event that required proof of vaccination. Only nurses with two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine could attend.
“This will create a global, digital infrastructure that will retain our personal information and this will introduce surveillance like we’ve never seen before,” Cavoukian said.
Manitoba is offering immunization cards for people who are fully vaccinated, meanwhile Saskatchewan has said it will not be asking its residents for proof of vaccination.
“Whether you’re vaccinated [or] I’m vaccinated, that is health information and health information is private,” said Kerry Bowman, a professor of bioethics and global health at the University of Toronto.
Bowman said if vaccine passports “can be avoided, they should be avoided.”
However, a May survey by Leger found the majority of Canadians are in favour of tracking proof of vaccination.
More than 35 per cent of Canadians have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Pandemics come and go, but experts worry the tracking of public health information could be here to stay.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
$500K-worth of elvers seized at Toronto airport
Fishery and border service officers seized more than 100 kilograms of unauthorized elvers at the Toronto Pearson International Airport on Wednesday.
Member of Israel's War Cabinet says he'll quit June 8 unless there's new war plan
Benny Gantz, a centrist member of Israel’s three-member War Cabinet, threatened on Saturday to resign from the government if it doesn't adopt a new plan in three weeks' time for the war in Gaza.
Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s has linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
To plant or not to plant? Gardening tips for May long weekend
May long weekend is finally here, and with the extra time off you may be getting the itch to head out to your garden and plant. However, the old debate whether you should plant now, or wait, is still ever-present.
His SUV was stolen on Montreal's South Shore. Then he got a $156 parking ticket
A couple is frustrated after their SUV was stolen from Montreal's South Shore in March and they received a parking ticket for the same vehicle last week.
Fort McMurray evacuees welcomed home Saturday as crews make progress on wildfire
Residents of Fort of McMurray who were displaced over wildfire concerns were told to return home Saturday.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
Scottie Scheffler, from the course to jail and back: What to know about his PGA Championship arrest
Two-time Masters champion Scottie Scheffler was arrested after police say he dragged an officer while trying to get around the scene of a fatal accident Friday ahead of the second round of the PGA Championship.
B.C. man 'attacked suddenly' by adult grizzly near Alberta boundary: RCMP
A B.C. man is recovering from multiple injuries after he was "attacked suddenly" by an adult grizzly bear near Elkford Thursday afternoon.