Canada regulator backs privacy-preserving age assurance
Canada regulator backs privacy-preserving age assurance
https://www.biometricupdate.com/202605/canada-regulator-backs-privacy-preserving-age-assurance
Publish Date: 2026-05-05 17:16:00
Source Domain: www.biometricupdate.com
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) has published a policy note and guidance documents pertaining to age assurance, as the country moves toward legislating age checks for adult content, social media sites and (possibly) AI chatbots.
Per the notice, the OPC’s guidance documents on age assurance “set out the ways in which the goal of creating a safer and more appropriate online experience for children can be advanced while mitigating potential adverse impacts on privacy.” They include documents to help organizations assess whether and how to use age assurance, design guidelines for “privacy protective” age assurance, a joint statement on a common international approach to age assurance, and details of an exploratory consultation conducted in 2024.
The OPC is accepting comments on the first two documents until August 4, 2026.
Privacy and safety first
The policy note summarizes concern about potential impacts, and suggests that “innovation in the space of online child protection – including the adoption or mandating of age assurance systems – must prioritize privacy to ensure that any benefits are not offset by disproportionate harms.” These include data breaches, tracking or profiling of an individual’s online activities, disproportionate collection and retention of personal information, and bias leading to access restrictions.
The guidelines for privacy preserving design include strict and explicit recommendations. Providers must collect minimal necessary data and delete it once an age signal is generated. They must include no more information than is necessary in an age check result, and their tech must not disadvantage any group. They must not use personal information collected for age assurance for any other purpose. And they must not retain any information about an individual’s age-assured online activities.
Softer recommendations (“shoulds”) include pursuing independent audits or conformity…
