Canadian copyright reform is in danger of stopping consumers blocking spyware, Canada's Privacy Commissioner has warned.
Jennifer Stoddart has added her voice to the concerns of activists opposing reforms which are seen as too industry-friendly.
Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart has written to industry minister Jim Prentice and heritage minister Josee Verner warning that some of the technologies used to protect copyright invade citizens' privacy, but proposed legislation stops consumers protecting themselves.
The letter concerns digital rights management (DRM) technology which is embedded into music or video files or on to discs to stop users from copying material. Some DRM goes further than that, though.
"If DRM technologies only controlled copying and use of content, our Office would have few concerns," said Stoddart in her letter. "However, DRM technologies can also collect detailed personal information from users, who often do no more than access the content on a computer. This information is transmitted back to the copyright owner or content provider, without the consent or knowledge of the user."
Stoddart explained that citizens can bypass these mechanisms, but that the government was about to make that an offence. "Although the means exist to circumvent these technologies and thus prevent the collection of this information, previous proposals to amend the Copyright Act contained anti-circumvention provisions," she wrote.
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