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Christopher Parsons

Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario

PERSONAL INFORMATION

  • Current Position: Manager, Technology Policy at the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario
  • Citizenship: Canadian
  • Email Address: (Removed for SPAM reasons, please see .pdf version or use my website’s ‘contact me‘ page)
  • Homepage: https://www.christopher-parsons.com

EDUCATION

  • University of Victoria, 2008 – 2014. PhD in Political Science. Dissertation: The Politics of Deep Packet Inspection: What Drives Contemporary Western Internet Service Provider Surveillance Practices. Advisor: Dr. Colin Bennett.
  • University of Guelph, 2006 – 2007. Master’s Program in Philosophy. Thesis: Technology, Communication, and Western Pluralistic Democracies: Realigning Privacy to Facilitate Citizen-Solidarity. Advisor: Dr. Omid Payrow Shabani.
  • University of Guelph, 2001 – 2006. Bachelor of Arts Honours (2006). Thesis: Sovereignty and Solidarity: Exploring the Citizen-Sovereign Relationship in Kant and Habermas. Advisor: Dr. Omid Payrow Shabani.

RESEARCH INTERESTS

  • Surveillance, Security, and Privacy Studies
  • Comparative public policy and regulation
  • Comparative politics
  • Internet governance

PUBLICATIONS

Journal Articles

Contributed Chapters

  • Parsons, Christopher; and Molnar, Adam. (2021). “Horizontal Accountability and Signals Intelligence: Lesson Drawing from Annual Electronic Surveillance Reports,” David Murakami Wood and David Lyon (Eds.), Big Data Surveillance and Security Intelligence: The Canadian Case.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “Law Enforcement and Security Agency Surveillance in Canada: The Growth of Digitally-Enabled Surveillance and Atrophy of Accountability,” in Harold Jansen and Tamara Small (Eds.), Digital Politics in Canada.
  • Molnar, Adam; and Parsons, Christopher. (2016). “Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Law Enforcement in Australia and Canada: governance through ‘privacy’ in an era of counter-law?,” Kevin Walby, Randy K. Lippert, Ian Warren and Darren Palmer (eds.), National Security, Surveillance, and Emergencies: Canadian and Australian Sovereignty Compared (McGill-Queen’s University Press).
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “Beyond the ATIP: New methods for interrogating state surveillance,” in Jamie Brownlee and Kevin Walby (Eds.), Access to Information and Social Justice (Arbeiter Ring Publishing).
  • Parsons, Christopher; Bennett, Colin; and Molnar, Adam. (2015). “Privacy, Surveillance, and the Democratic Potential of the Social Web,” in Beate Roessler and Dorota Mokrosinksa (Eds.), Social Dimensions of Privacy (Cambridge University Press).
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “Stuck on the Agenda: Drawing lessons from the stagnation of ‘lawful access’ legislation in Canada,” Michael Geist (ed.), Law, Privacy and Surveillance in Canada in the Post-Snowden Era (Ottawa University Press).
  • Bennett, Colin; Parsons, Christopher; and Molnar, Adam. (2014). “Forgetting and the right to be forgotten” in Serge Gutwirth et al. (Eds.), Reloading Data Protection: Multidisciplinary Insights and Contemporary Challenges  (Springer).
  • Bennett, Colin; and Parsons, Christopher. (2013). “Privacy and Surveillance: The Multi-Disciplinary Literature on the Capture, Use, and Disclosure of Personal information in Cyberspace” in W. Dutton (Ed.), Oxford Handbook of Internet Studies (Oxford University Press).
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2013). “Sex, Lies, and Digital Memory: How Social Surveillance Threatens Communities” in J. Greenberg and C. D. Elliott (Eds.),  Communication in Question: Competing Perspectives on Controversial Issues in Communication Studies (Second Edition).
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2011). “Is Your ISP Snooping On You?”, in M. Moll and L. R. Shade (Eds.), The Internet Tree: The State of Telecom Policy in Canada 3.0.
  • Parsons, Christopher; Ly, Alexander; Anderson, Steve; and Sinnott, Shea. (2011). “The Open Internet: Open for Business and Economic Growth” in S. Anderson and R. Yeo (Eds.). Casting An Open Net: A Leading-Edge Approach to Canada’s Digital Future.
  • Israel, Tamir; Faassen, Mark; Parsons, Christopher; and Cusack McDonald, Jacqueline. (2011). “The Technical Case for Openness” in S. Anderson and R. Yeo (Eds.). Casting an Open Net: A Leading-Edge Approach to Canada’s Digital Future.

Popular Articles

Reports

Submissions to Government

  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Public and Private Policy Implications of PHAC’s Use of Mobility Information,” House of Commons’ Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy, and Ethics, February 2022.
  • Thomasen, Kristen; Dunn, Suzie; Robertson, Kate; Hrick, Pam; Khoo, Cynthia; Kim, Rosel; Okidegbe, Ngozi; and Parsons, Christopher (reviewer and signatory). (2021). “Submission to the Toronto Police Services Board’s Use of New Artificial Intelligence Technologies Policy – LEAF and The Citizen Lab,” Toronto Police Services Board, December 2021.
  • Khoo, Cynthia; Gill, Lex; and Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Comments on the Federal Government’s Proposed Approach to Address Harmful Content Online,” Department of Canadian Heritage, September 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher; and Robertson, Kate. (2021). “Comments on the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario’s Draft Body Worn Camera Guidance,” Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, May, 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Building Trust in Chinese Infrastructure Vendors and Communications Intermediaries,” Special Committee on Canada-China Relations, March 2021.
  • Gill, Lex; Khoo, Cynthia; Knockel, Jeffrey; Molnar, Adam; Parsons, Christopher; and Robertson, Kate. (2020). “Submission of the Citizen Lab to the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services (MGCS) Consultation: Strengthening Privacy Protections in Ontario,” Ministry of Government and Services Consultation, October 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “Cybersecurity in the Financial Sector as a National Economic Security Issue,” Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security, February 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher; Gill, Lex; Israel, Tamir; Robinson, Bill; and Deibert, Ronald. (2017). “Analysis of the Communications Security Establishment Act and Related Provisions in Bill C-59 (An Act respecting national security matters), First Reading (December 18, 2017),” Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security, December 2017.
  • Israel, Tamir; and Parsons, Christopher (for Open Media). (2016). “Written Inquiry Under Part 5 of the Freedom of Information & Protection of Privacy Act (“FIPPA) of British Columbia: In re: Vancouver Police Department,” Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of British Columbia, March 2016.
  • Israel, Tamir; and Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “Regarding Vidéotron’s Practices Related to its Mobile Wireless Unlimited Music Service,” Canadian Radio-television Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), October 2015.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Brief: Social Networking and Canadian Privacy Law: Jurisdiction, Retention, and Disclosure,” Parliamentary Access to Information, Privacy, and Ethics Committee, December 2012. Available at: https://christopherparsonscom.files.wordpress.com/2022/07/0760f-ethi-final.pdf.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2009). “Public Comments for CRTC Interrogatory PN 2008-19,” Canadian Radio-television Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), February 2009. Available at: https://christopherparsonscom.files.wordpress.com/2022/07/8cd8f-public-comments-for-crtc-interrogatory-pn-2008-parsons.pdf.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2008). “Submission to the Standing Committee of the Ontario Legislative Assembly of Ontario, concerning Bill 85, Photo Card Act, 2008,” Ontario Legislative Assembly, October 2008.

Select Self-Published Articles

Other Outputs

PRESENTATIONS

Academic Presentations

  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Government Surveillance and Accountability: The Case for Further Law Reform and Capacity Building,” Big Data Surveillance at University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada, May 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “The Rise and Proliferation of State-Driven Mass Surveillance,” University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark, November 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “Rearticulating Who Is Secured,” Centre for Global Studies, Victoria, Canada, February 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “Rearticulating Who Is Secured: The Importance of Citizen-Centric Security Policies,” Cyber Security Across Borders: State of Play in Cyberspace Governance and Protection in Canada, the United States and the world, Montreal, Canada, January 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Accountability and Government Reporting of Computer Exploits,” Defending Democracy, Ottawa, Canada, October 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Challenges, Changes, Disruptions, and Directions of Canadian Cybersecurity Policy,” Centre for International Policy Studies (CIPS), Ottawa, Canada, March 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2017). “Horizontal Accountability and Signals Intelligence: Lesson Drawing From Annual Surveillance Reporting,” Security Intelligence and Surveillance in the Big Data Age, Ottawa, Canada, October 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2017). “Public Accountability, Transparency, and Signals Intelligence: Lesson Drawing Domestic and International Surveillance Reporting,” MégaData 2017: Citoyenneté, Métadonnées, Sécurité, Laval, Canada, October 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2017). “‘Bulk’ Surveillance: Past Activities & Current Trajectories,” Surveillance Studies Summer Seminar, Kingston, Canada, June 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2016). “Privacy Implications of Police Adoption of IMSI Catchers,” Beyond ‘Privacy’? Reconsidering Surveillance & The Law (Organized by Deakin University), Melbourne, Australia, May 2016.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2016). Privacy Is Not Enough: Broadening the Lens in an Era of Mass Surveillance,” UK-Canada Frontiers of Science meeting (Organized by the Royal Society and the Royal Society of Canada), Whistler, Canada, March 2016.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “The Limits of Privacy: Understanding and Reacting to the Broader Harms of Mass Surveillance,” The Algorithmic State: Cyber Challenges to Democracy, Haifa, Israel, December 2015.
  • Hilts, Andrew; and Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “Half Baked: The opportunity to secure cookie-based identifiers from passive surveillance,” USENIX/FOCI 2015, Washington DC, August 2015.
  • Hilts, Andrew; and Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “Access My Info: An Application That Helps People Create Legal Requests for Their Personal Information,” HotPETs, Philadelphia, USA, June 2015.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “Stuck on the Agenda: Lesson drawing from ‘lawful access’ issues in Canada,” Cryptography, Security, and Privacy Speaker Series on Privacy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Canada, July 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “CSEC Surveillance: Clarity and Action in Response to Failed Oversight,” Surveillance Studies Centre at Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada, April 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2013). “Regulators, Politics, and Deep Packet Inspection: Who’s Driving What, and Why?” Connaught Summer Institute on Monitoring Internet Openness and Rights, Toronto, ON, July 2013.
  • Irvine, Valerie; Parsons, Christopher; Bailey, Aaron; and Richards, Luke. (2013). “How BC Privacy Law on Social Networking is Shackling 21st Century Education and Proposed Path Forward,” The Canadian Society for the Study of Education Annual Conference, Victoria, BC, June 2013.
  • Bennett, Colin; Parsons, Christopher; and Molnar, Adam. (2013). “Real and Substantial Connections: Enforcing Canadian Privacy Laws against American Social Networking Companies,” Online Privacy: Consenting to your Future, Malta, March 2013.
  • Bennett, Colin; Parsons, Christopher; and Molnar, Adam. (2013). “Forgetting, Non-Forgetting and Quasi-Forgetting in Social Networking: Canadian Policy and Corporate Practice,” 6th International Conference of Computers, Privacy & Data Protection, Brussels, Belgium, January 2013.
  • Bennett, Colin; Molnar, Adam; and Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Forgetting, Non-Forgetting and Quasi-Forgetting: Canadian Policy and Corporate Practice,” JSPS Conference, Tokyo, Japan, November 2012.
  • Bennett, Colin; Molnar, Adam; and Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Social Networking and Canadian Jurisdiction: With which Privacy Laws do Social Networking Services think they need to comply,” Asian Privacy Law Scholars Conference, Meiji University, Tokyo, Japan, November 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher; Savirimuthu, Joseph; Wipond, Rob; and McArthur, Rob. (2012). “ANPR: Code and Rhetorics of Compliance,” Surveilling Surveillance, Florence, Italy, September 2012.
  • McPhail, Brenda; Parsons, Christopher; Ferenbok, Joseph; Smith, Karen; and Clement, Andrew. (2011). “Identifying Canadians at the Border: The 9/11 Legacy.” The Expanding Surveillance Net: Ten Years after 9/11, Kingston, Ontario, September 2011.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Lawful Access – Obligations, Costs, and Threats,” 2012 BCNET HPCS, Vancouver, BC, May 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2011). “Technology and Politics in Tunisia and Iran: Deep Packet Surveillance.” Digital Inflections: Visions of the Posthuman Future, Victoria, BC, March 2011.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2010). “Deep Packet Inspection: Privacy, Mash-ups, and Dignities.” COUNTER: Counterfeiting and Privacy Research Conference, Manchester, UK, March 2010.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2009). “The Ontological Crisis of Melancholia: Searching for Foundations in the Ether of Cyberspace.” (inter)disciplinarities: theory and crisis Graduate Conference, Victoria, Canada, March 2009.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2007). “New Online Teaching Tools for TAs: Web 2.0 possibilities and pitfalls.” University of Guelph Teaching Assistant Conference, Guelph, Canada, September 2007.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2007). “The Besieged Nation-State and the Internet: Managing digital networks and realizing their political potential.” University of Guelph Master’s Student Seminar Conference, Guelph, Canada, April 2007.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2005). “Care: A Model for Ethical Behaviour.” University of Guelph Undergraduate Society Conference, Guelph, Canada, October 2005.

Government Presentations and Briefings

  • Parsons, Christopher. (2023). “Presentation of Findings from the Expert Panel on Public Safety in the Digital Age,” Public Safety Canada, April 2023.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Public and Private Policy Implications of PHAC’s Use of Mobility Information,”  House of Commons’ Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy, and Ethics, February 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Building Trust in Chinese Infrastructure Vendors and Communications Intermediaries,” Special Committee on Canada-China Relations, March 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “Transparency, Accountability, and the Future of National Security Policy in Canada,” Canadian National Security Transparency Advisory Group (NS-TAG), June 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher, and Cynthia Khoo. (2020). “Stalkerware: Threats and Solutions,” Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Ottawa, Canada, January 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “The State of Canadian Encryption Policy,” Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Ottawa, Canada, January 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “Cybersecurity in the Financial Sector as a National Economic Security Issue,” Standing ParliamentaryCommittee on Public Safety and National Security, Ottawa, ON, February 2019.  
  • Parsons, Christopher; and Molnar, Adam. (2017). “Government Surveillance Accountability: The Failures of Contemporary Canadian Interception Reports,” Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, Toronto, ON, November 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher; and Hilts, Andrew. (2014). “The Status of Telecommunications Transparency in Canada, Fall 2014,” Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Toronto, ON, September 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “Telecommunications Transparency in Canada: Advancing the Discussion,” Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Ottawa, ON, May 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher; Bennett, Colin; and Molnar, Adam. (2013). “Inconsistency in Accessing Information from Social Networking Services,” Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Ottawa, ON, May 2013.
  • Parsons, Christopher; and Molnar, Adam. (2012). “The BC Services Card: Potentials, Challenges, and Risks,” Office of the Privacy Commissioner of British Columbia, Victoria, BC, November 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2010). “ISP Surveillance and Deep Packet Inspection.” Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for British Colombia, Victoria, BC, November 2010.

Public and Professional Presentations

  • Parsons, Christopher (2024). “Web Scraping Publicly Available Data and Generative Artificial Intelligence Technologies,” Citizen Lab, March 2024.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2024). “Panelist: Modern Government-Artificial Intelligence in the Public Sector,” Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, January 2024.
  • Parsons, Christopher and Stoddart, Jennifer. (2023). “Presentation of Findings from the Expert Panel on Public Safety in the Digital Age,” Federal, Provincial, and Territorial Information and Privacy Commissioner’s Annual Meeting, October 2023.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2023). “Artificial Intelligence Technologies: Contemporary Uses, Challenges, and Opportunities,” BC OIPC, August 2023.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “(Keynote) Today’s Harms, Yesterday’s Decisions, and Regulatory Paths Ahead,” Denton’s Regulating the Internet—Really?, November 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Digital Authoritarianism and the Future of Electronic Surveillance: Commons on Near- and Mid-Term Information Control Threats,” CASIS, November 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Lawful Access and Pressing Domestic Challenges,” Canadian Bar Association, October 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Security vs Security in a Threat-Filled World: Exploratory Paths Forward,” Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP): e-Crimes, May 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Blunt National Security Advice Endangers Open Academic Collaboration,” McMillan Researcher Security Webinar, April 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Capacities, Limitations, and Possible Futures of Government Cyber-Security Efforts,” McMillan Cybersecurity Webinar, April 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Digital Economy—Impact of Big Data & AI on Privacy & Justice,” Toronto Science Policy Network, University of Toronto, April 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Assessing the Watchers of the Watchers: Successes, Missteps, and Opportunities for Reform,” IPSI Lecture Series, University of Toronto, March 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Chaotic Information Environments: Unclear Signalling,” Canadian Internet Governance Forum, March 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Canadian Privacy Laws vs the COVID-19 Pandemic: Learnings and Areas for Reform,” Asia Pacific Privacy Authorities (APPA) Conference, December 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Policy Innovation Initiative—Fireside Chat Series,” University of Toronto, October 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Where Are We Going? Possible Privacy and Equity Consequences of Contemporary Encryption Debates,” IAPP (Victoria and Vancouver), October 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Can Canada and China Still Learn From One Another? Balancing Research Partnerships, National Security and Economic Competitiveness,” McMillan, October 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Where does our health data go? Exploring privacy, ethics and data uses,” University of Toronto, August 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Disruptors & Dilemmas: Growing the Economy Bit by Bit,” University of Toronto, March 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Horizontal Accountability and Signals Intelligence: Lesson Drawing from Annual Electronic Surveillance Reports,” Laurier University, March 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Panelist: TikTok & WeChat, where to now?,” Australian Strategic Policy Institute, February 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “(Keynote) Emerging Policy Surveillance Technologies: An Imperative to Move from Reflexive Secrecy to Reflexive Accountability,” Information and Privacy Commissioner of Canada Privacy Day Symposium, January 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Panel: Law Enforcement and Surveillance,” Information and Privacy Commissioner of Canada Privacy Day Symposium, January 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Privacy, Transparency, and Accountability in a Digital World,” Global Ideas Institute (Munk School of Global Affairs), January 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “Huawei and 5G: Clarifying the Canadian Equities and Charting a Strategic Path Forward,” Later Life Learning Toronto, November 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “Security vs Security: Weighing the History of Encryption Policy in Canada,” Canadian Internet Governance Forum, November 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “Electronic Surveillance: The Growth of Digitally Enabled Surveillance and the Atrophy of Accountability in Law Enforcement and Security Agencies,” Prairie Political Science Association, November 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “COVID Tracing Apps,” The Canadian Bar Association (Privacy & Access Law Section—North), October 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “Safe to Trace,” ISOC, June 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “Encryption in the Age of Covid,” ISOC Webinar series on encryption, ISOC, May 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “Huawei and 5G: Clarifying the Canadian Equities,” IPSI Lecture Series, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada, March 2020.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “5G, Huawei, and the Canada-China Relationship,” Canadian Council on International Law, Ottawa, Canada, October 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “Dual Use and Canada’s Duelling Commitments to Human Rights,” Canadian International Council (Toronto Chapter), Toronto, ON, October 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “Canada’s Mass Surveillance Regime: Now With Adequate Accountability?” Open Government Partnership Global Summit, Ottawa, ON, May 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “Bill C-59: Capabilities, Costs, and Future Accountability,” Institute on Governance’s Future Forum, Ottawa, ON, May 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “Encryption At A(nother) Turning Point: Why Canada must avoid an irresponsible encryption policy,” Reboot Privacy and Security Conference, Victoria, BC, February 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Government Mass Surveillance in Canada: law, policy, and reality,” Civic Tech, Toronto, ON, October 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Artificial Intelligence: A Future in Cybersecurity?” Ryerson University, Toronto, ON, May 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Access My Information: A Canadian Case Study,” RightsCon, Toronto, ON, May 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Empowering Citizens Through Transparency: A Case of Canada’s Access My Information Tool,” RightsCon, Toronto, ON, May 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Making Transparency Reports Meaningful,” RightsCon, Toronto, ON, May 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Security, Surveillance, and Secrecy,” National Judicial Institute, Ottawa, ON, February 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher; and Abramson, Bram. (2017). “Telecom Transparency: Gearing Up With A Digital Citizenry,” Canadian ISP Summit, Toronto, ON, November 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2017). “Bulk Surveillance Operations: When ‘Transparency’ Is Not Enough,” DefCon Toronto, Toronto, ON, September 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2017). “Journalism and Information Security, Overview,” HotDocs, Toronto, ON, May 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2017). “(Keynote) Mass Surveillance Unleashed: The Implications for Academic Freedom,” University of Guelph SpringIT Conference, Guelph, ON, May 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2017). “(Keynote) Accountability, Intelligibility, and Democratic Legitimacy: Enhancing Canadians’ trust in the law,” Department of Justice Training Conference, Ottawa, ON, February 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2017). “The Risks and Implications of ‘Incidental’ Government Surveillance,” Toronto Public Library, Toronto, Canada, March 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2017). “The Risks and Implications of ‘Incidental’ Government Surveillance,” Toronto Public Library, Toronto, Canada, February 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2016). “Government Surveillance of Mobile Phones in Canada,” Toronto Public Library, Toronto, Canada, November 2016. [External Link to Presentation.]
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2016). “IMSI Catchers in the Canadian Context,” 44th Annual Canadian Lawyers’ Association, Toronto, Canada, October 2016.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2016). “Encryption: A Technical Overview,” 38th International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners, Marrakech, Morocco, October 2016.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2016). “Transparency in Surveillance: Role of Intermediaries in Facilitating State Surveillance Transparency,” RightsCon 2016, San Francisco, March 2016.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2016). “Threats Signals Intelligence Agencies Pose to Democratic Society,” Why Should I Care? (WSIC), Toronto, Canada, February 2016.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “Security Vulnerabilities in a Connected World,” Resilient Critical Infrastructure & Cyber Security, Toronto, Canada, October 2015.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “The Boomerang Traffic Effect,” Internet Society Canada Chapter: First Canadian Internet Symposium, Ottawa, Canada, September 2015.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “Motivating Transparency and Change in Canadian Telecommunications,” digifest 2015, Toronto, Canada, May 2015.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “Online Privacy Rights,” 16th Annual Privacy and Security Conference, Victoria, Canada, February 2015.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “The Practice and Pragmatics of Surveillance Transparency” 16th Annual Privacy and Security Conference, Victoria, Canada, February 2015
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “Government Surveillance in a ‘Transparent’ Era,” Toronto Public Library, Toronto, ON, January 2015.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “Transparency in Canadian Telecommunications: Successes and Failures,” International Institute of Communications Canada 13th Annual Conference, Ottawa, ON, October 2014
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014) “Democracy in an Era of Mass Surveillance: A Canadian Perspective,” National Privacy and Data Governance Congress 2014, Calgary, AB, October 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014) “Government Surveillance and the Privacy of Canadian Business Communications,” National Privacy and Data Governance Congress 2014, Calgary, AB, October 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “Lawful access and online surveillance,” Canadian Internet Forum 2014, Ottawa, ON, October 2014.
  • Hilts, Andrew; and Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “Howto access your info with the AMI tool,” Toronto Sunshine Summit, Toronto, ON, September 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “Should Surveillance Scare You?” Canadian Journalists for Free Express, Toronto, ON, June 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “Data, Privacy, and Managing Organizational Risks,” Guelph Web Makers Meetup, Guelph, ON, April 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher; Bennett, Colin; and Molnar, Adam. (2014). “Inconsistency in Accessing Information from Social Networking Services,” Canadian Civil Liberties Association ‘Pathways to Privacy, Toronto, ON, March 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “CSEC Surveillance: The Failure of Government Accountability,” 8th Annual Munk School Graduate Conference, Toronto, ON, March 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “The Blurry State of Canadian Surveillance,” Privacy at Risk? The NSA and CSEC, its Canadian Surveillance Partner, Toronto, ON, March 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2013). “Ways for Non-Profits and Charities to Assess and Evaluate Privacy Risks,” NetSquared, Victoria, BC, October 2013.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2013). “Panel: Can I See Some ID? Benefits and Risks of Identification Cards in Canada,” Privacy and Access 20/20: A New Vision for Information Rights, Vancouver, BC, October 2013.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2013). “Panel: It’s Just Metadata!” Sunshine Summit, Victoria, BC, September 2013.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2013). “Panel: Privacy and Cybersecurity Considerations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP),” Google Big Tent Canada 2013, Ottawa, ON, May 2013.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Lawful Access, Intelligence Legislation, and Foreign Experiences,” University of Victoria Law Club: (Un)Lawful Access – A Panel on Online Surveillance, Victoria, BC, March 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Lawful Access: Stepping towards a harmonized surveillance complex,” (Un)Lawful Access Legislation: Ottawa Forum, Ottawa, ON, February 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Lawful Access: Technical Potentials and Observations from the US and UK,” (Un)Lawful Access: Premier and Panel Discussion, Vancouver, BC, January 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2011). “Lawful Access, Transmission Data, and Lessons from Abroad,” Stop Online Surveillance Forum, Vancouver, BC, July 2011.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2011). “Watch Out! It’s the Feds!” Social Media Club Victoria, Victoria, BC, April 2011.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2011). “An Internet Broadband Monitor, and You.” Lightening Talk Session at CanSecWest, Vancouver, BC, March 2011.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2010). “Putting the Meaningful into Meaningful Consent.” Social Media Club Vancouver, Vancouver, BC, October 2010.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2010). “Traffic Analysis, Privacy, and Social Media.” Social Media Camp Victoria, Victoria BC, October 2010.

WORKSHOPS AND ROUNDTABLES

  • Parsons, Christopher (2024). “Web Scraping: Privacy, Free Expression, Lawfare, and A Road Ahead,” Citizen Lab, March 2024.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2023). “Fostering Private Sector-Government Collaboration on Open-Source Intelligence: Breaking Barriers and Embracing Innovation,” Centre for International Governance and Innovation (CIGI), May 2023.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2022). “Government Partnerships with Data Brokers”, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), November 2022.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Coordinated Vulnerability Disclosure for Networked Technologies II,” Ryerson University/Cybersecure Policy Exchange, May 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Coordinated Vulnerability Disclosure for Networked Technologies I,” Ryerson University/Cybersecure Policy Exchange, March 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2021). “Tech@Fletcher Careers Workshop,” Citizen Lab/Tufts University, March 2021.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2020). “EU Export Controls and Dual-Use,” Citizen Lab, November 2020.
  • Khoo, Cynthia; and Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “Mobilizing Stalkerware Research for Security and Frontline Support, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto (Citizen Lab Summer Institute 2019), Toronto, Canada, July 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2019). “Privacy and Security Challenges Facing Canadian Activists,” Department of Political Science at University of Victoria, Victoria, Canada, February 2019.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Canadian Multistakeholder Process: Enhancing IoT Security,” ISOC Canada, Toronto, Canada, June 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Evaluating Stalkerware,” Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto (Citizen Lab Summer Institute 2018), Toronto, Canada, June 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Policy Responses to Digital Interference in Elections,” Public Policy Forum. Toronto, Canada, May 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2018). “Regulating in the Dark: Mapping the Encryption Debate,” Faculty of Law at University of Toronto, February 2018.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2017). “Signals Intelligence in Canada,” Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto (Citizen Lab Summer Institute 2017), July 2017.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2016). “National Security Accountability,” Munk School of Global Affairs at University of Toronto, November 2016.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2016). “Investigative Techniques,” Munk School of Global Affairs at University of Toronto, October 2016.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2015). “CSIS – One Step Forward, Two Steps Backward,” Centre for Global Studies. Victoria, Canada, February 2015.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “The Citizen Lab: Research With Impacts,” The Smart Cybersecurity Network (SERENE-RISC) Official Launch. Ottawa, Canada, May 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “Contemporary Methods for Rending Transparent Contemporary Surveillance Practices,” The Politics of Surveillance: Advancing Democracy in a Surveillance Society. Ottawa, Canada, May 2014.
  • Molnar, Adam; and Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “Studying State Surveillance Practices in Canada: Opportunities, Limitations, and Headaches,” The Politics of Surveillance: Advancing Democracy in a Surveillance Society. Ottawa, Canada, May 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2014). “Corporate Responsibility: Towards Accountable and Transparent Data Stewardship (Rapporteur’s Report),” Cyber Dialogue. Toronto, Canada, March 2014
  • Parsons, Christopher; Bennett, Colin; and Molnar, Adam. (2014). “Privacy, Surveillance, and the Democratic Potential of the Social Web,” Social Dimensions of Privacy. Wassenaar, Amsterdam, January 2014.
  • Parsons, Christopher; Molnar, Adam. (2013). “Informal Governance through Code and Standards,” The Legitimacy of Private Transnational Governance by Contract. Victoria, Canada, August 2013.
  • Parsons, Christopher; Molnar, Adam. (2013). “Watching You: Some implications of surveillance-by-UAVs,” Canadian Political Science Association Congress. Victoria, BC, June 2013.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2013). “The BC Services Card: A Privacy and Security Overview,” The BC Services Card: Privacy Risks, Opportunities and Alternatives. Vancouver, BC, April 2013.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2013). “Lawful Access is Dead; Long Live Lawful Intercept!” Center for Global Studies Global Talks. Victoria, BC, March 2013.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “(Facilitator) Training activists about state surveillance capabilities,” Electronic Surveillance and Human Rights Camp. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, December 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Deep Packet Inspection: What is it, how does it work, and how is it used for surveillance,” Electronic Surveillance and Human Rights Camp. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, December 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Respondent: Internet Governance as a Multi-Actor and Multi-Network Issue,” Global Governance and the Internet: Is ‘Organized Chaos’ Best?, Victoria, BC, November 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Borders, Privacy, and Web 2.0,” Governance and Democracy Across Borders, Victoria, BC, October 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2012). “Transparent Practices Don’t Stop Prejudicial Surveillance.” Networked Surveillance: Access Control, Transparency, Power, and Circumvention in the 21st Century, Toronto, Canada, February 2012.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2011). “Social Media: Is there a place for it in education?” Learning Systems/Learning and Teaching Center Instructional Technologies Series workshop, Victoria, Canada, November 2011.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2011). “Mobility: Value Propositions, Lawful Access, and Communicative Privacy.” Citizen Lab Roundtable, Toronto, Canada, June 2011.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2011). “The Evolving Role of Cyber Surveillance in Public Sector Decision-Making.” Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic Roundtable, Ottawa, Canada, June 2011.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2009). “Deep Packet Inspection: Heuristics, Transparency, and the Canadian Situation.” Deep Packet Inspection Roundtable, Toronto, Canada, June 2009.
  • Parsons, Christopher. (2009). “Moving Online: Your Packets, Your ISP, Your Identity.” Critical Digital Studies Workshop, Victoria, Canada, June 2009.

RESEARCH EXPERIENCE

  • Senior Research Associate, Citizen Lab, 2019 – 2023.
  • Research Contractor, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, 2019.
  • Co-Investigator with Dr. Ronald Deibert (University of Toronto) and Dr. Adam Molnar (Deakin University) for “Understanding and Responding to the Privacy and Safety Risks of Stalkerware,” 2018-2019.
  • Research Contractor, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, 2016-2017.
  • Research Associate, Citizen Lab 2016 – 2019.
  • Research Consultant with Open Effect for “Improving Canadians’ access to their personal information,” Andrew Hilts (Executive Director, Open Effect), 2015-2016.
  • Research Consultant with Open Effect for “A Comparative Analysis of Fitness Tracker Privacy and Security,” Andrew Hilts (Executive Director, Open Effect), 2015-2016.
  • Co-Investigator with Dr. Ronald Deibert (University of Toronto) and Dr. Lokman Tsui (Chinese University of Hong Kong) for “Journalism and Information Security”, 2015 – 2017.
  • Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Postdoctoral Fellow (Citizen Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto), 2014-2016.
  • Managing Director for Telecom Transparency Project (Citizen Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto), 2014-Present.
  • Postdoctoral Fellow at Citizen Lab (Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto) on State Access to Telecommunications Data, 2013-2014.
  • Co-Investigator with Dr. Colin Bennett (University of Victoria) on Social Networking and Privacy Protection: Analyzing the “Access” in Lawful Access. Grant money provided through the Office of the Privacy Commissioner or Canada’s contributions program, 2012-2013.
  • Co-Researcher with Kate Milberry for “A National ID Card by Stealth? The BC Services Card,” Micheal Vonn (Policy Director, British Columbia Civil Liberties Association), 2012-13.
  • Co-Researcher with Adam Molnar for ‘The BC Services Card: Drivers, Architectures, and Risks’, Kate Milberry (Researcher, British Columbia Civil Liberties Association), 2012.
  • Author and researcher of “Literature Review of Deep Packet Inspection,” Andrew Clement (Professor, University of Toronto). Funding provided by the New Transparency’s Cyber-Surveillance Workshop, 2011.
  • Principle researcher and author for the Lawful Access Regime Project, Micheal Vonn (Policy Director, British Columbia Civil Liberties Association), 2011.
  • Research Assistant for Deep-Packet Inspection: Resources for the Analysis of Privacy Implications in Canada, Colin Bennett (University of Victoria) supervising. Grant money provided through the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s contributions program, 2009-2010.
  • Research Assistant for The New Transparency Project, Colin Bennett (University of Victoria) and Andrew Clement (University of Toronto) supervising. Large seven-year SSHRC MCRI, 2008-2009.

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

  • Invited Lecturer, “National Security, Cybersecurity, and Privacy,” Carleton University (Graduate Class), November 2023. 
  • Invited Lecturer, “Overview of Central Privacy Challenges, Today,” University of Toronto (Law School Graduate Class), Toronto, ON, October 2023.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Cyberwarfare and Governance Challenges,” Carleton University (Graduate Class), October 2022.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Lawful Access in Canada: Surveillance Capabilities and Sought Powers,” University of Toronto (Law School Graduate Class), Toronto, ON, August 2022.
  • Invited Lecturer,” Transparency and Accountability, and the Need for Law Reform,” University of Toronto (Graduate Class), Toronto, ON, March 2022.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Challenges to Privacy and Data Protection in the Coming Years,” University of Toronto (Graduate Class), Toronto, ON, January 2022.
  • Invited Lecturer, “CSIS, CSE, and the Prospective Targeting of Activists in Canada,” University of Victoria (Undergraduate Class), Victoria, BC, July 2021.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Transparency and Accountability in Theory and Practice,” University of Toronto (Combined Undergraduate/Graduate Class), Toronto, Ontario, March 2021.
  • Invited Lecturer, “The Policies and Politics of Encryption: A Canadian Focus,” University of Victoria (Combined Undergraduate/Graduate Class), Victoria, BC, February 2021.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Contemporary Surveillance, Privacy, and Data Protection Risks,” University of Ottawa (Undergraduate Class), Ottawa, Ontario, October 2020.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Access My Info: Using PIPEDA to Facilitate Journalism,” Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, September 2020.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Accountability and Transparency: For Whom and For What?,” University of Toronto (Graduate Class), Toronto, Ontario, March 2020.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Accountability and Transparency: For Whom and For What?,” University of Toronto (Undergraduate Class), Toronto, Ontario, March 2020.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Huawei and 5G: A Discussion,” University of Toronto (Graduate Class), Toronto, Ontario, March 2020.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Human Rights in the Digital Era,” University of Toronto (Graduate Class), Toronto, Ontario, January 2020.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Rearticulating Who is Secured and the Need to Adopt Human- and Citizen-Centric Security Vulnerability Policies,” Canadian Military College (Graduate Class), Toronto, Ontario, December 2019.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Privacy Theory, Contemporary Law, and the Conditions for Democratic Accountability,” University of Toronto (Undergraduate Class), October 2019.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Access My Info: A Canadian Case,” University of Waterloo (Undergraduate Class), September 2019.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Right to Access and Digital Advocacy,” York University (Undergraduate Class), January 2018.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Chokepoints: The Roles of Intermediaries For Conducting and Exposing Surveillance,” University of Toronto (Graduate Glass), October 2017.
  • Invited Lecturer, “How Intermediaries Enable and Resist Government Surveillance,” University of Toronto (Graduate Class), March 2017.
  • Invited Lecturer, “The Historical and Current Status of IMSI Catchers in Canada,” York University (Law School), January 2017.
  • Invited Lecturer, “IMSI Catchers: How Can the Law Catch Up with Their Operation in Canada?,” University of Toronto (Law School), October 2016.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Contemporary Signal Intelligence,” University of Toronto (Undergraduate/Graduate Class), October 2016.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Beyond Privacy: The Deficits of Contemporary Privacy Theories in Accounting for Government Surveillance Activities,” York University (Undergraduate Class), March 2016.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Intermediaries: Agents of Government, Practitioners of Governance,” University of Toronto (Graduate Class), March 2016.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Chokepoints: The roles of intermediaries for conducting and exposing surveillance,” University of Toronto (Undergraduate/Graduate Class), November 2015.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Deep Packet Inspection: A Corporate/Government Surveillance Nexus,” University of Guelph (Undergraduate Class), February 2015.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Privacy Is Not the Counter To Mass Surveillance Surveillance: Re-articulating the harms of surveilling the world-at-large,” Liverpool Law School (Undergraduate Class), February 2015.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Signals Intelligence: The Practice of Mass and Targeted Surveillance,” University of Toronto (Graduate Class), January 2015.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Policing the Net: Intermediaries and Transparency,” University of Toronto (Graduate Class), October 2014.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Policing the Net: Intermediaries and Transparency,” University of Toronto (Graduate Class), February 2014.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Networks of Power II – Cybersurveillance, Netwar, and Resistance,” University of Alberta (Graduate Class), May 2013.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Privacy, Surveillance, and Contemporary Digital Communications,” University of Victoria, October 2012.
  • Sessional Instructor, POLI 456: Politics of the Internet, University of Victoria, June-August 2012. [Course Syllabus PDF]
  • Invited Lecturer, ” Unpacking Kant’s “On the Common Saying: ‘This May be True in Theory, but it does not Apply in Practice,” University of Victoria, June 2012.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Networks of Power II – Cybercrime/surveillance/war,” University of Alberta (Graduate Class), May 2012.
  • Invited Lecturer, “The International, the State, and the Lulz,” University of Victoria, November 2011.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Technology and Politics in Tunisia and Iran: Deep Packet Surveillance,” University of Victoria, February 2011.
  • Invited Lecturer, “Managing Your Online Transparency: Privacy on the Social Web,” Camosun College, March 2010.
  • Invited Lecturer, “The Technology Threatening Culture and Privacy (or: the acronym your ISP doesn’t want you to know),” University of Victoria, March 2010.
  • Teaching Assistant, Introductory Social and Political Philosophy (with Prof. Omid Payrow Shabani). Department of Philosophy, University of Guelph, Fall 2007.
  • Teaching Assistant, Ethics (with Prof. Alan Belk). Department of Philosophy, University of Guelph, Spring 2007.
  • Teaching Assistant, Introductory Social and Political Philosophy (with Prof. Eva Buccioni). Department of Philosophy, University of Guelph, Fall 2006.

AWARDS/FELLOWSHIPS/GRANTS

  • Co-Investigator, Understanding and Responding to the Privacy and Safety Risks of Stalkerware, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, 2018-2019.
  • USA State Department’s International Visitors Leadership Program (Cybersecurity) Participant, September-October 2018.
  • Canadian Internet Registration Authority’s Community Investment Program, June 2015-April 2016.
  • Best Political Science Dissertation in the Western States, 2013/14, The Western Political Science Association.
  • Social Science and Humanities Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship, October 2014-September 2016.
  • Canadian Internet Registration Authority’s Community Investment Program, May 2014 – April 2015.
  • Postdoctoral Fellowship, Munk School of Global Affairs, November 2013-September 2014.
  • Centre for Global Studies Graduate Student Fellowship, Centre for Global Studies, January 2013-August 2013.
  • Co-Investigator, Canadian Access to Social Media Information (CATSMI) Project, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s Contributions Program, 2012-2013.
  • Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, 2009-2012
  • Private Scholarship, The 2009 Canadian Telecom Summit, 2009
  • Conference Travel Grant, University of Victoria Office of Graduate Studies, 2009.
  • Conference Travel Grant, Critical Digital Studies Workshop, 2009.
  • Ontario Graduate Scholarship (Provincial-level award), 2008-2009 (declined to accept).
  • Forster Medal (University-level award), College of Arts Nominee, 2008.

SERVICE

  • Reviewer for: Internet Policy Review, Journal of Cyber Policy, Journal of Information Technology & Politics, Law & Policy, Moral Philosophy and Politics, Surveillance & Society.
  • Expert Panel Member, CCA Expert Panel on Public Safety in the Digital Era, 2021-2023.
  • Workshop Presenter, “Policy Writing for Canadian Academics,” Waterloo, Ontario, December 2021.
  • Participant, Public Policy Forum–Debating the Right Balances for Privacy Law in Canada, September 2021.
  • Advisory Member, “CSA Group Research Project—Privacy and Wellness Wearables: Emerging Trends and Power Dynamics in a Grey Area”, 2021.
  • Judge, “Global Ideas Institute Symposium 2021,” Toronto, Ontario, March 2021.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Canadian Cybersecurity Dialogue,” Ottawa, Canada, December 2019.
  • Workshop Moderator, “Session One: C-59 Is Here. Now What?” Ottawa, Canada, December 2019.
  • Workshop Moderator, “Session Three: Slipping Through the Cracks,” Ottawa, Canada, December 2019.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Citizen Lab Summer Institute on Monitoring Internet Openness and Rights,” Citizen Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at University of Toronto, July 2019.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Canadian Cybersecurity Dialogue,” Ottawa, ON, November 2018.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Citizen Lab Summer Institute on Monitoring Internet Openness and Rights, Citizen Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs at University of Toronto, July 2018.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Regulating in the Dark: Mapping the Encryption Debate,” Faculty of Law at University of Toronto, February 2018.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Citizen Lab Summer Institute on Monitoring Internet Openness and Rights,” Citizen Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs at University of Toronto, July 2017.
  • Panel Facilitator, “Surveillance, Censorship, and Human Rights Online,” Decoding the Digital Divide, Munk School of Global Affairs at University of Toronto, March 2017.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Investigative Techniques and National Security Accountability Workshop,” Munk School of Global Affairs at University of Toronto, September-November 2016.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Citizen Lab Summer Institute: Monitoring Internet Openness and Rights,” Citizen Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs at University of Toronto, July 2016.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Citizen Lab Summer Institute: Monitoring Internet Openness and Rights,” Citizen Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs at University of Toronto, June 2015.
  • Program Committee Member, “Free and Open Communications on the Internet,” FOCI 2015, Washington DC, August 2015.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Citizen Lab Summer Institute: Monitoring Internet Openness and Rights,” Citizen Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs at University of Toronto, August 2014.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Networked Surveillance: Access Control, Transparency, Power, and Circumvention in the 21st Century,” iSchool 2012 workshop, University of Toronto, February 2012.
  • Administrator for, and contributor to, Digitally Mediated Surveillance Canada (www.digitallymediatedsurveillance.ca), 2011 – 2013.
  • Technical Consultant for Peninsula: A Journal of Relational Politics. University of Victoria graduate student journal, 2010 – 2012.
  • Administrator of Deep Packet Inspection Canada (www.deeppacketinspection.ca), 2010 – 2014.
  • Workshop Organizer, “Cyber-surveillance in Everyday Life,” Multidisciplinary workshop, University of Toronto, May 2011.
  • Principle Conference Organizer, “Identity and Its Roots,” Multidisciplinary Graduate Student Conference, University of Guelph, May 2008.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

  • Manager, Technology Policy, Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, 2023-Present.
  • A/Manager, Technology Policy, Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, 2022 – 2023.
  • Senior Technology & Policy Advisor, Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, 2022.
  • Senior Research Associate, Citizen Lab, 2019-2023.
  • Participant, Speaking Our Truths: The Journey Towards Reconciliation, 2022.
  • Research Contractor, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, 2019.
  • Participant, Ally Skills Workshop, Citizen Lab, 2018.
  • Research Associate, Citizen Lab, 2016 – 2019.
  • Research Contractor, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, 2016-2017.
  • Policy Consultant, TekSavvy, 2016.
  • Policy Consultant, Open Media, 2016.
  • Research Consultant, Open Effect, 2015-2017.
  • Board of Advisors, The Mackenzie Institute, 2014-Present.
  • Board of Advisors, Khaki Scout Software, 2014-Present.
  • Technical Consultant, Ranking Digital Rights Project (for New America Foundation), 2014.
  • Principal, Block G Privacy and Security Consulting, 2013-2016.
  • Computer Lab Technician, University of Guelph, College of Social and Applied Human Science, 2008.
  • Networking Assistant, University of Guelph, College of Social and Applied Human Sciences, 2007-2008.
  • Copyeditor, Dr. Omid A. Payrow Shabani, May 2008.
  • Senior Computer Lab Assistant, University of Guelph, College of Social and Applied Human Sciences, 2006 – 2007
  • Copyeditor, Dr. Omid A. Payrow Shabani, October 2007

MEMBERSHIPS/ACCREDITATIONS/RESIDENCIES/SEMINARS

Memberships

  • Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario’s Strategic Advisory Council, 2022-2023.
  • Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) Working Group 3: Re-Imagining A Canadian National Security Strategy for the Twenty First Century—Making Digital Living Safe and Secure, 2021.
  • Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s Civil Society Roundtable, 2020-Present.
  • Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario Ad Hoc Strategic Advisory Committee, 2020-2021.
  • Noncommercial Stakeholder Group at the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), 2013 – Present
  • Canadian Internet Registry Association (CIRA), 2011 – Present
  • American Political Science Association, 2008 – 2013
  • International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), 2007 – 2012
  • Canadian Philosophical Association, 2006 – 2009

Accreditations

  • Canadian Local Digital Rights Champion (Access), 2018.
  • Transparency Hero on Human Rights and Communications Surveillance (Access), 2014.
  • Successful Transparency Advocate (Electronic Frontier Foundation), 2014.
  • Privacy-by-Design Ambassador (Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario), 2012 – Present
  • College of Arts Teaching Practicum: Level I (University of Guelph), 2007

Residencies

  • Faculty of Information, University of Toronto, May 2011

Seminars

  • Surveillance Studies Summer Seminar, Queen’s University, May 2009

MEDIA COVERAGE

The Agenda, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), Australian Financial Review, Alberta Primetime, Ars Technica, Associated Press, Australian Financial Review, Bloomberg Businessweek, Bloomberg TV, Boing Boing, Business Vancouver, Calgary Herald, Canada.com, Canadian Intelligence, Eh (Podcast) Canadaland, Canadaland OPPO, Canada’s National Observer, Canadian Business, Canadian Press, CBC: All Points West, CBC: Blue Skies, CBC: The Current, CBC Day Six, CBC: Inside Politics, CBC: The National (and CBC television affiliates), CBC News, CBC News: British Columbia, CBC News: Business, CBC News: Canada, CBC News: Politics, CBC News: Power & Politics, CBC News: Technology and Science, CBC Ottawa Morning, CBC Spark, CBC: Q, CBC The House,  CircleID, Citytv Breakfast Television, CTV News: Edmonton, CTV: Kevin Newman Live, CTV: Power Play, CTV: Your Morning, Daily Nation (Kenya), Drupal Watchdog, DSL/Broadband Reports, L’Express, Financial Post, Financial Times, Focus Magazine, Folha De Sao Paulo, Global News, Globe and Mail (Online and Print), Hill Times, Hong Kong Free Press, IPC: Infomatters, iPolitics, The Intercept, Intrepid Podcast, LawBytes, Lawyer’s Daily, The Logic, Macleans, Metro News, Montreal Gazette, Mother Jones, MSN News, National Post (Online and Print), O Globo, Ottawa Citizen, Owni, PC Advisor (UK), People Magazine, La Presse, The Province, The Record, Reuters, SC Magazine, Slashdot, South China Morning Post, Techvibes, Times Columnist, Toronto Star, TVO’s The Agenda, TVO’s Search Engine, The Tyee, University Affairs, Vancouver Sun, The Varsity, Vice News, Vice: Motherboard, The Walrus, The Washington Post, The Washington Times, The Wire Report, Yahoo! News, and various other local and provincial radio and print outlets. 

Updated March 1, 2024.