[Image: Ann Cavoukian, Ph.D.]

Ann Cavoukian, Ph.D.

Information & Privacy Commissioner

Ontario, Canada

What people are saying

  • The end structure of the new systems was very strongly informed by the PbD

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  • Robert Cook: Chief Information Officer, University of Toronto

  • As a PbD Ambassador, I’m a fervent supporter of its Principles and

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  • Claudiu Popa: Founder and Principal Risk Advisor, Informatica Corporation

  • Congratulations to you (on the PbD Resolution)! You are such a tremendous

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  • Dr. Ilse Treurnicht: CEO of the MaRS Discovery District

  • I want to congratulate you on the incredible achievement of what I would call

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  • Terry McQuay: President, Nymity Inc.

  • Privacy By Design is a set of seven high-level concepts, created by

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  • Intel views Privacy by Design as a necessary component of our accountability

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  • David A. Hoffman: Director of Security Policy and Global Privacy Officer, Intel Corporation.

  • A long-time advocate of privacy technologies, Ann coined the term Privacy by

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  • Dr. Stefan Brands: Principal Architect, Identity & Security Division, Microsoft Corporation.

  • Ann Cavoukian is a rare breed — a government official working with privacy

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  • Jared Kaprove:  

  • “This is amazing. Every time I see something like this, it makes me sad that

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  • Christopher Soghoian: Berkman Centre for Internet & Society, Harvard University

  • PbD is the first set of concrete privacy best practices I have seen

    ... read more
  • Claudiu Popa: President, Informatica
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Trilogy of Applications

The concept of Privacy by Design extends to the following Trilogy of Applications: Information Technology; Accountable Business Practices; Physical Design. Select an application below to learn more.

Information Technology

Technology itself is not inherently a threat to privacy. The key lies in how it is used.

For example, technology allows us to protect privacy through methods such as severing personal identifiers from data, or by encrypting personal information in a manner such that it can only be viewed by those who are authorized to do so. As technological innovations continue to pose new threats to privacy, Privacy-Enhancing Technologies can minimize these threats.




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Accountable Business Practices

Too often, organizations protest that implementing serious privacy measures increase operating costs while adding nothing to the value of their business.

Commissioner Cavoukian has always advocated the idea that privacy is good for business. Her message to both public and private sector organizations: privacy should be treated as a business issue, not a compliance issue. Privacy by Design allows businesses to achieve a competitive advantage, by developing and maintaining accountable business practices.




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Physical Design

When discussing privacy, the physical design of areas where personal information is shared or stored is often overlooked. Think of a pharmacy or hospital waiting room where individuals are often obliged to share personal health information in front of, and within earshot of, others.

Similarly, you can have customer records stored safely away in a filing cabinet, but if there are no locks on the filing cabinets, then the privacy of those records cannot be assured. The importance of making sure that an organization’s physical assets and infrastructure address privacy requirements cannot be stressed enough.




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1. Information Technology2. Accountable Business Practices3. Physical Design