Access and Privacy Online

News Summary January 15th, 2026

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This is your Access and Privacy News Summary for Thursday, January 15th—our first  News Summary of 2026. 

After the holiday break, there’s a lot to catch up on. Across Canada and internationally, familiar themes re-emerge: data breaches with unresolved accountability, governments struggling to balance security, privacy, and transparency, and growing pressure to define how artificial intelligence is governed—or not governed—in practice. 

We’ll start in Nova Scotia, where the fallout from a major data breach is colliding with electricity rate hikes and renewed debate over access-to-information law. Then we’ll move through Canadian privacy and access stories shaped by FOI requests before turning to international developments involving Big Tech, AI misuse, and whistleblower protections. 

Show Notes: https://fipa.bc.ca/nm/20260115-access-and-privacy-online 

Individual Stories: https://fipa.bc.ca/tag/2026-season-episode-02  

FIPA Bill C-4 

  • UPDATED Call to Action: https://fipa.bc.ca/bill-c-4-2025/ 
    • FIPA Bill C-4 Part 4 Dashboard: https://fipa.bc.ca/fipa-bill-c-4-part-4-dashboard/ 
      • Bill C-4 Part 4 line-by-line and brief: https://fipa.bc.ca/bill-c-4-part-4-line-by-line-and-brief/ 

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        Our Contributors: 

        Writing: Shaun Fisk | Production: Patrick Farnsworth | Music: Breakmaster Cylinder  

        Access and Privacy Online: https://fipa.bc.ca/research-resources/podcasts/access-and-privacy-online/  

        News stories through the Canadian Press and Feedly. 

        Available through: PodBean, Apple iTunes,  YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM. ListenNotes,  Podchaser, Boomplay 

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        Access and Privacy OnlineBy Freedom of Information and Privacy Association (FIPA)