What It Is

PIPEDA (Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act) is Canada's federal privacy regulation for private-sector organizations handling personal information in commercial activities. Enacted in 2000, it establishes national standards via a principles-based approach derived from 10 Fair Information Principles in Schedule 1, balancing business needs with individual rights across Canada, including cross-border and federally regulated entities.

Key Components

• **10 core principlesAccountability, Identifying Purposes, Consent, Limiting Collection, Limiting Use/Disclosure/Retention, Accuracy, Safeguards, Openness, Individual Access, Challenging Compliance.
• Derived from CSA Model Code; no fixed controls but interconnected requirements like privacy officer designation and breach reporting.
• Compliance model enforced by Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) through investigations, audits, and Federal Court orders.

Why Organizations Use It

• Legal obligation for commercial activities, avoiding fines up to CAD $100,000 and reputational damage.
• Builds consumer trust, reduces breach risks, enables competitive advantage in digital economy.
• Supports cross-border transfers with contractual safeguards.

Implementation Overview

• Phased approach: governance setup, data mapping, PIAs, policies, training, audits.
• Applies to private-sector firms nationwide (exemptions for intra-provincial in AB/BC/QC); scalable by size.
• No formal certification but OPC guidance and self-assessments ensure ongoing compliance.

What It Is

APRA Prudential Standard CPS 234 (Information Security) is a binding Australian regulation for APRA-regulated financial entities, effective 1 July 2019. It requires maintaining information security capabilities commensurate with threats to ensure resilience against incidents impacting confidentiality, integrity, or availability (CIA) of information assets, including those managed by third parties. Adopts a risk-based, assurance-driven approach with board accountability.

Key Components

• Board responsibility (para 13) and defined roles (para 14)
• Asset classification by criticality and sensitivity (para 20)
• Lifecycle controls (para 21), incident response plans (paras 23-26)
• Systematic testing (paras 27-31) and internal audit (paras 32-34)
• 72-hour notification for material incidents (para 35) No fixed controls; focuses on commensurate governance and testing.

Why Organizations Use It

• Mandatory for ADIs, insurers, super funds to avoid penalties
• Enhances cyber resilience, third-party oversight
• Builds customer trust, operational continuity
• Aligns with CPS 220/230 for prudential compliance

Implementation Overview

Phased: gap analysis, policy framework, asset inventory, testing programs, monitoring. Targets Australian financial sector; requires ongoing APRA reporting, no certification but supervisory audits. (178 words)