Privacy & Information Security Law Blog

On October 15, 2012, Privacy Commissioner of Canada Jennifer Stoddart and the Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information in Germany, Peter Schaar, signed an agreement to increase intra-authority collaboration between their organizations. The agreement covers the exchange of information between the two data protection authorities, for example by informing each other of pending complaints. Notably, the agreement also addresses coordination between the DPAs with respect to their supervision of international data processing activities.

The Canada-Germany agreement is representative of a broader trend of DPAs working together across borders, and the signatories have indicated they would like to see increased cooperation globally. The upcoming 34th International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners in Uruguay is expected to provide a wider forum for discussions regarding this type of multinational collaboration.