Andy Kaplan-Myrth

Partying like she’s 17

Cannot believe our daughter is 17 today. She’s the most wonderful, smart, kind, strong woman.

Today the Ontario IPC and OHRC jointly released our AI Principles. They are designed to help orgs develop, deploy, and use AI systems in ways that maintain the public trust while respecting privacy and upholding human rights.

Read the Joint IPC-OHRC AI Principles at: www.ipc.on.ca/en/resources...

News release: Privacy Commissioner of Canada expands investigation into social media platform X following reports of AI-generated sexualized deepfake images - Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada www.priv.gc.ca/en/op...

Our policy on digital platforms

We’ve adopted a new policy clarifying how we’ll be using digital platforms to share our journalism

Going forward, we will expect any platforms we use to demonstrate basic commitments to user safety, information integrity and democratic values

Learn more: pressprogress.ca/journalistic...

An unusual #CRTC decision dropped today: Eastlink has to continue to sell certain speeds to competitors even though they are not selling them at retail, signaling the CRTC's willingness to balance competition concerns against slavish adherence to past practice. crtc.gc.ca/eng/archive/...

TekSavvy Solutions Inc. Quarterly Transparency Report Reporting period: April 1, 2025 to June 30, 2025 Published January 2026 Introduction The purpose of this report from TekSavvy is to provide insight into our disclosure practices by detailing how often we receive and respond to government agencies’ requests for the personal information of our end users. This edition of our Transparency Report contains information about requests that we received between April 1, 2025 to June 30, 2025. As of the date when this report was published, at least six months have passed since we received or responded to each of those requests. The Government of Canada has endorsed the development and issuance of transparency reports. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) has subsequently developed Transparency Reporting Guidelines. Although we have adopted most of those Guidelines, we have decided to deviate in respect of how we present the data. <snip>

📢 Today, TekSavvy published a **Quarterly Transparency Report** about requests we got from police and how we handled them.

This report covers the period from April to June, 2025 and as usual, I’m summarizing that report here 🧵👇🏼

#Privacy #Transparency #TransparencyReport #Telecom #TekSavvy
1/9

TekSavvy Solutions Inc. Law Enforcement Guide TekSavvy Solutions Inc. is a provider of Internet access, voice telephony, and related telecommunication services. Hastings Cable Vision Ltd. is a broadcast distribution undertaking, Internet and voice service provider, and an affiliate of TekSavvy Solutions Inc. This document refers to both companies together as the TekSavvy Companies, or simply as “TekSavvy”. We retain subscriber information in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. As innovators in the protection of online consumer rights, we are committed to protecting the privacy of our customers. The purpose of this Guide is to assist law enforcement agencies in understanding TekSavvy’s retention and disclosure practices. That being said, these practices are subject to change without notice. Table of Contents ...

TekSavvy is the only ISP in Canada (AFAIK) that publishes detailed information about how we handle requests from law enforcement. You can learn more from our Law Enforcement Guide, which includes what info we have about subscribers, and when we do or do not disclose it. www.teksavvy.com/pol...
9/9

Link back to the top of this thread: bsky.app/profile/andy...
10/10

TekSavvy Solutions Inc. Law Enforcement Guide TekSavvy Solutions Inc. is a provider of Internet access, voice telephony, and related telecommunication services. Hastings Cable Vision Ltd. is a broadcast distribution undertaking, Internet and voice service provider, and an affiliate of TekSavvy Solutions Inc. This document refers to both companies together as the TekSavvy Companies, or simply as “TekSavvy”. We retain subscriber information in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. As innovators in the protection of online consumer rights, we are committed to protecting the privacy of our customers. The purpose of this Guide is to assist law enforcement agencies in understanding TekSavvy’s retention and disclosure practices. That being said, these practices are subject to change without notice. Table of Contents ...

TekSavvy is the only ISP in Canada (AFAIK) that publishes detailed information about how we handle requests from law enforcement. You can learn more from our Law Enforcement Guide, which includes what info we have about subscribers, and when we do or do not disclose it. www.teksavvy.com/pol...
9/9

Finally, as always: Sometimes our numbers don’t add up perfectly, or may not be totally complete, mostly because it's hard to perfectly keep track of every informal request, including so-called "jurisdiction requests". There may be small discrepancies in our numbers due to that.
8/9

Screenshot: 5) Disclosures Made at the Initiative of the Organization During this reporting period, TekSavvy performed 5 disclosures to government agencies at our own initiative. This category describes any disclosures TekSavvy made proactively. We only make voluntary disclosures if TekSavvy becomes aware of a real and imminent threat to someone’s wellbeing or when we are required by law to make such a disclosure. These kinds of circumstances do not arise often. When they do, they most frequently result from one of our agents overhearing physical violence during a phone interaction with our customers. TekSavvy Policy We record all of our phone conversations with our customers, within the technical constraints of our systems. These recordings are retained for a period of two years to assist in the resolution of service-related or billing disputes.

This quarter, we made a record 5 proactive reports to law enforcement. These are when an agent overhears violence or a threat. It is never related to a customer's online activity; we do not track that. From our stats, we make proactive disclosures about 5 times per year, so this is high.
7/9

Screenshot: 4) Administrative Requests Of the 51 requests received during this reporting period, 1 request for information was an “administrative request”. TekSavvy did not have any relevant information in response to this request. This category describes any requests for information about TekSavvy’s customers made by government agencies exercising their administrative powers. Administrative powers are, broadly speaking, powers that are created by law and exercised by government agencies or government officials, ranging from tax audits to the issuance of licences and permits.

We received one "Administrative" request from an agency that is not technically "law enforcement", but they had power to *compel* disclosure, i.e. we had to disclose. Administrative agencies are typically a tax agency or the CRTC's enforcement folks. In this case, we did not have relevant info.
6/9

Screenshot: 2) Emergency (Exigent) Requests Of the 51 requests received during this reporting period, 20 were requests for information in relation to exigent or emergency circumstances. TekSavvy provided the requested information in response to 17 of those requests. This category includes all requests made in relation to “an emergency that threatens the life, health or security of an individual” as set out in subsection 7(3)(e) of PIPEDA which allows organizations such as TekSavvy to disclose a subscriber’s personal information without their knowledge or consent. TekSavvy Policy Before disclosing information in response to an exigent or emergency request, TekSavvy requires the agency making the request to answer a series of questions intended to establish the urgency of the request and the importance of the requested information. This approach ensures compliance with subsection 7(3)(e) of PIPEDA before we disclose the requested information. <snip>

There were a record 20 emergency requests this quarter, and we identified subscribers in 17 cases (previous record was 11 in Q1 2025). Average is under 8 requests. Our disclosure rate in response to those requests seems consistent -- our policy for when to respond has not changed.
5/9

Since our disclosure rate is generally lower for provincial than for federal requests, our overall disclosure rate is also lower. From 2020-now, we disclosed info for ~90% of fed requests, but 62% of prov. Why? Fed agencies act fast while we have logs, and rarely make informal requests.
4/9

A line graph titled 'Requests for information from Federal agencies fell off a cliff in 2024' displays data from Q1 2017 to Q2 2025. It features two lines: yellow for provincial requests and blue for federal requests. The y-axis ranges from 0 to 50. Provincial requests fluctuate between roughly 10 and 44, with noticeable peaks in Q3 of 2022 and 2024, and show a rising trend in 2024. Federal requests decline sharply starting in Q2 2024, dropping to nearly zero by Q3 2024 and remaining low into 2025.

Requests from federal agencies remains very low compared to pre-2024, at just 1. From 2020-23, the avg number of fed requests per Q was 25; since 2024, it has been under 5. Fed requests dropped in 2024, while Prov requests rose. We don't know why it's happening; changes in police practices? 🤷
3/9

screenshot of a data table showing requests TekSavvy received from law enforcement from April to June 2025.

Download at www.teksavvy.com/pol... (now in English and French)

The number of requests and disclosures in this report is pretty typical. In Q2 2025, we got 51 requests and orders, compared to:

38 in Q3 2023
59 in Q4 2023
39 in Q1 2024
40 in Q2 2024
40 in Q3 2024
39 in Q4 2024
36 in Q1 2025
2/9

TekSavvy Solutions Inc. Quarterly Transparency Report Reporting period: April 1, 2025 to June 30, 2025 Published January 2026 Introduction The purpose of this report from TekSavvy is to provide insight into our disclosure practices by detailing how often we receive and respond to government agencies’ requests for the personal information of our end users. This edition of our Transparency Report contains information about requests that we received between April 1, 2025 to June 30, 2025. As of the date when this report was published, at least six months have passed since we received or responded to each of those requests. The Government of Canada has endorsed the development and issuance of transparency reports. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) has subsequently developed Transparency Reporting Guidelines. Although we have adopted most of those Guidelines, we have decided to deviate in respect of how we present the data. <snip>

📢 Today, TekSavvy published a **Quarterly Transparency Report** about requests we got from police and how we handled them.

This report covers the period from April to June, 2025 and as usual, I’m summarizing that report here 🧵👇🏼

#Privacy #Transparency #TransparencyReport #Telecom #TekSavvy
1/9

In happier news, it is our 27th wedding anniversary today. Jan 3, 1999, we braved the Toronto snowstorm of the century.

As much in love now.

Photos by Vince Pietropaolo

Picard management tip: If you're on red alert every day, then red alert means nothing.

Screenshot of cover page: TekSavvy Solutions Inc. Quarterly Transparency Report Reporting period: January 1, 2025 to March 31, 2025 Published October 2025 Introduction The purpose of this report from TekSavvy is to provide insight into our disclosure practices by detailing how often we receive and respond to government agencies’ requests for the personal information of our end users. This edition of our Transparency Report contains information about requests that we received between January 1, 2025 to March 31, 2025. As of the date when this report was published, at least six months have passed since we received or responded to each of those requests. <snip>

📢 Today, TekSavvy published a **Quarterly Transparency Report** about requests we got from police and how we handled them.

Last week, we published the report on Jan to Mar, 2025 and as usual, I’m summarizing that report here 🧵👇🏼

#Privacy #Transparency #TransparencyReport #Telecom #TekSavvy
1/9

TekSavvy Solutions Inc. Law Enforcement Guide TekSavvy Solutions Inc. is a provider of Internet access, voice telephony, and related telecommunication services. Hastings Cable Vision Ltd. is a broadcast distribution undertaking, Internet and voice service provider, and an affiliate of TekSavvy Solutions Inc. This document refers to both companies together as the TekSavvy Companies, or simply as “TekSavvy”. We retain subscriber information in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. As innovators in the protection of online consumer rights, we are committed to protecting the privacy of our customers. The purpose of this Guide is to assist law enforcement agencies in understanding TekSavvy’s retention and disclosure practices. That being said, these practices are subject to change without notice. Table of Contents ...

TekSavvy is the only ISP in Canada (AFAIK) that publishes detailed information about how we handle requests from law enforcement. You can learn more from our Law Enforcement Guide, which includes what info we have about subscribers, and when we do or do not disclose it. www.teksavvy.com/pol...
9/9

Finally, as always: Sometimes our numbers don’t add up perfectly, or may not be totally complete, mostly because it's hard to perfectly keep track of every informal request, including so-called "jurisdiction requests". There may be small discrepancies in our numbers due to that.
8/9

Moving on, this quarter, we did not make any proactive reports to law enforcement. These are rare, like when an agent overhears violence or a threat. It is never related to a customer's online activity; we do not track that. From our stats, we make proactive disclosures about 5 times per year.
7/9

Screenshot of text: 4) Administrative Requests Of the 36 requests received during this reporting period, 1 request for information was an “administrative request”. TekSavvy did not have any relevant information in response to this request. This category describes any requests for information about TekSavvy’s customers made by government agencies exercising their administrative powers. Administrative powers are, broadly speaking, powers that are created by law and exercised by government agencies or government officials, ranging from tax audits to the issuance of licences and permits.

We disclosed information to 1 "Administrative" agency. That's an agency that is not technically "law enforcement", but they had the legal authority to *compel* disclosure, i.e. we had to disclose the information. Administrative agencies are typically a tax agency or the CRTC's enforcement folks.
6/9

Screenshot of text: 2) Emergency (Exigent) Requests Of the 36 requests received during this reporting period, 11 were requests for information in relation to exigent or emergency circumstances. TekSavvy provided the requested information in response to 10 of those requests. This category includes all requests made in relation to “an emergency that threatens the life, health or security of an individual” as set out in subsection 7(3)(e) of PIPEDA which allows organizations such as TekSavvy to disclose a subscriber’s personal information without their knowledge or consent. TekSavvy rejected one of these exigent requests since this request came from a foreign law enforcement agency. As explained in these reports under point number 8, TekSavvy informed this foreign law enforcement agency that they would need to work with a Canadian law enforcement agency to request or order TekSavvy to disclose the requested subscriber information.

There were 11 emergency requests this quarter, and we identified subscribers in 10 cases. We rejected 1 that came from a foreign law enforcement agency.

11 exigent requests is a new record for a quarter. (Average is 6). We got 7 in Q4 of 2024. The previous max was 10 in Q1 of 2024.
5/9

Since our disclosure rate is generally lower for provincial than for federal requests, our overall disclosure rate is also lower. From 2020-now, we disclosed info for ~90% of fed requests, but 62% of prov. Why? Fed agencies act fast while we have logs, and rarely make informal requests.
4/9

A line graph titled 'Requests for information from Federal agencies fell off a cliff in 2024' displays data from Q1 2017 to Q1 2025. It features two lines: yellow for provincial requests and blue for federal requests. The y-axis ranges from 0 to 50. Provincial requests fluctuate between roughly 10 and 44, with noticeable peaks in Q3 of 2022 and 2024, and show a rising trend in 2024. Federal requests decline sharply starting in Q2 2024, dropping to nearly zero by Q3 2024 and remaining low into 2025.

Requests from federal agencies remains very low compared to pre-2024, at just 1. From 2020-23, the avg number of fed requests per Q was 25; since 2024, it has been under 5. Fed requests dropped in 2024, while Prov requests rose. We don't know why it's happening; changes in police practices? 🤷
3/9

Screenshot of the summary table in TekSavvy's quarterly transparency report for January to March 2025.

Download at www.teksavvy.com/pol... (🎉Now published in French too!)

The number of requests and disclosures in this report is average. In Q1 2025, we got 36 requests and orders, compared to:

45 in Q2 2023
38 in Q3 2023
59 in Q4 2023
39 in Q1 2024
40 in Q2 2024
40 in Q3 2024
39 in Q4 2024

2/9

Screenshot of cover page: TekSavvy Solutions Inc. Quarterly Transparency Report Reporting period: January 1, 2025 to March 31, 2025 Published October 2025 Introduction The purpose of this report from TekSavvy is to provide insight into our disclosure practices by detailing how often we receive and respond to government agencies’ requests for the personal information of our end users. This edition of our Transparency Report contains information about requests that we received between January 1, 2025 to March 31, 2025. As of the date when this report was published, at least six months have passed since we received or responded to each of those requests. <snip>

📢 Today, TekSavvy published a **Quarterly Transparency Report** about requests we got from police and how we handled them.

Last week, we published the report on Jan to Mar, 2025 and as usual, I’m summarizing that report here 🧵👇🏼

#Privacy #Transparency #TransparencyReport #Telecom #TekSavvy
1/9

The Canadian SHIELD Institute: A rad, not radical think tank Competition advocate Vass Bednar discusses how her agents of SHIELD plan to address the twin problems of Canadian sovereignty and economic concentration

From Peter Nowak's Do Not Pass Go podcast: "The Canadian SHIELD Institute: A rad, not radical think tank"