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Information Privacy COVID-19 Update

Wednesday, 8 April 2020 18:38

Yukon's Information and Privacy Commissioner has released new advice on the privacy risks associated with using information technology to support working from home, and/or other remote locations.

Working remotely is not new. Many jobs provide the opportunity to work partially from home or other remote locations. The long list of popular applications used to work, teach, socialize and interact remotely include Zoom, Slack and Houseparty. Older applications include cloud-storage as well as cooperation solutions such as Skype for Business, Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, and iCloud. There are also messaging and video conferencing capabilities through WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger.

Video conferencing applications carry some inherent privacy risks not dependent on the specific technology used. Broadcast video can be recorded by anyone taking part in the conversations. Someone's image is their personal information and is protected by law. If some or all of a video conference is recorded or shared, privacy laws must be complied with.

Data integrity must also be protected under privacy laws and may be at risk if a recorded video is altered. Videos are susceptible to alterations that appear very realistic, with the rise of deep-fake technology

A chat that is work-related is more than just a chat; it is a business record. Without proper controls in place, chat conversations may contain personal information (for example, opinions or decisions about a person) and may constitute substantive records with associated obligations to retain and protect these records.

Chat functions may even be used to transfer complete documents, with all the risks of retention of these documents on intermediary servers and endpoints alike. These risks include privacy breaches, unauthorized disclosures or alterations.

For more information on the privacy risks associated with working from home or other remote location go to www.ombudsman.yk.ca

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