Asia Pacific privacy conference covers biometric data collection, voice ID case

Privacy authorities from the Asia-Pacific region discussed privacy rights, biometric data collection, artificial intelligence, and other cross-border security issues at the 58th Asia Pacific Privacy Authority (APPA) forum, said a news release from the Officer of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC).

Held in Singapore and hosted by the country’s Personal Data Protection Commission,

The forum saw representatives from seventeen APPA member nations gather to meet and discuss privacy regulation, enforcement and best practices, along with trade and industry partners from across the world’s fastest-growing economic region.

The Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Phillippe Dufresne, gave a presentation, entitled “Biometrics Technology,” on data collection at border crossings, which focused on building accountability and public trust around the collection of biometric data, and emphasized the need for governments to be transparent about the use and disclosure of that information.

Dufresne, who also moderated a discussion about privacy during the COVID-19 pandemic and joined in a panel on the principle of accountability for regulating artificial intelligence, called the APPA forum “a unique opportunity for open dialogue and sharing of experiences in support of our collective goal to protect and promote the fundamental privacy rights of our citizens while fostering robust and innovative economies.”

Other representatives of the OPC took part in panel discussions on safeguarding children’s privacy, voiceprint-based biometric authentication technology, and broader issues of regulatory law and global privacy networks. Regarding voiceprint tech, the OPC’s Deputy Commissioner of Compliance, Brent Homan, profiled a case study involving a complaint filed against Rogers Communications, alleging non-consensual data collection by the telecom corporation’s Voice ID platform. In that investigation, the OPC found that Voice ID had violated Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronics Documents Act 2000 (PIPEDA) by collecting voiceprints of users who had not provided valid and meaningful consent, or had opted out of the program.

The 59th APPA forum will be held in 2023 in Mexico.

Article Topics

biometric identifiers  |  biometrics  |  data collection  |  data privacy  |  legislation  |  regulation  |  voice biometrics