A parliamentary committee will hold hearings on the use of Canadian Royal Police (federal police) spyware and the potential risks of this on the privacy rights of Canadians.

The Privacy Protection Committee in the House of Commons voted yesterday to determine what are the "device investigation tools" used by the Royal Police and to request a list of court orders obtained to use such software.

The committee also requested a list of warrants or any information regarding phone tapping on members of parliament, parliamentary assistants, or other employees.

The committee was summoned to meet after the Canadian Royal Police submitted a document to the House of Commons describing its use of tools capable of secretly and remotely obtaining data from devices such as phones and computers.

The committee submitted this document in response to a question posed by Member of Parliament Tako van Popta who asked what government programs collect data from Canadians.
 

Van Popta belongs to the Conservative Party, which forms the official opposition, and represents a district in the province of British Columbia in the far west of the country.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police's Secret Access and Interception Team (CAIT), established in 2016, uses tools to collect data, text messages, emails, and calendar entries, according to the Royal Police document.

These tools can also capture "audio recordings of private communications and other sounds within the range of the targeted device" and "photographs of people, places, and activities visible through the camera(s) included in the targeted device."

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police stated that these tools are necessary to collect private communications that cannot be captured using traditional "phone tapping" devices or other technologies, adding that the widespread use of encryption on devices makes conducting court-authorized surveillance "many times more difficult."
 

The proposal calls for the summoning of witnesses, including the Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino, the current Privacy Commissioner, former commissioners, and Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers who supervised the use of spyware.

The proposer, René Villemure, a Member of Parliament from the Bloc Québécois, says that the operational use of such software by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police is concerning, and it is necessary to speak with direct officials to ensure accountability and privacy protection.

According to the proposal, hearings will begin no later than August 8 and will last two days, requiring up to four meetings of the Privacy Protection Committee.

The committee will present a report on its findings and recommendations by September 19.