October 2018

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) may not be the first agency that comes to mind with respect to cybersecurity, but the SEC has been in the headlines recently with respect to cyber fraud in particular. Earlier this month, the SEC promulgated a report urging companies to take preventive measures against cyber fraud.

The Court of Appeal has upheld a decision of the High Court  holding that an employer can be vicariously liable for data breaches caused by the actions of an employee, even where the employee’s actions were specifically intended to harm the employer. This decision is significant as it means a company can be held liable to compensate affected data subjects for loss caused by a data breach, even where the company has committed no wrongdoing and regardless of the employee’s motive.

Like many organizations in Canada, yours is probably not fully prepared for the mandatory breach reporting requirements coming into force under the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) November 1, 2018.

Here are three measures your organization