Since its adoption in September 2021, Law 25 has reshaped Quebec’s data protection landscape. Inspired by the European GDPR, it enforces stricter rules for businesses and public organizations regarding the collection, use, and storage of personal information. The goal? To enhance transparency, strengthen corporate accountability, and give individuals greater control over their data.
Supervised by the Commission d’accès à l’information du Québec (CAI), Law 25 was implemented in phases, with the final provisions coming into effect in September 2024, particularly those concerning data portability. For businesses and organizations, compliance is no longer optional—it’s a legal imperative, with financial and criminal penalties at stake. To help you navigate this regulation, this edition of Compliance Check-Up breaks down the essentials of Law 25 into five key points.
1 - Consent & Transparency: The New Rules of Engagement
Personal data is a valuable asset for businesses, whether collected directly from users or via tracking technologies like cookies. Law 25 establishes a clear framework for handling this data, built on three fundamental pillars: increased transparency, enhanced accountability, and, most importantly, explicit consent when required. This consent must be freely given, informed, specific, time-bound, granular, clearly worded, and independent of other terms.
Transparency is also non-negotiable. Companies must publish and maintain a clear, accessible privacy policy that outlines how personal data is collected, used, shared, and secured. Visitors must be informed about why their data is being collected, how long it will be retained, their rights regarding their information, and whether their data may be transferred outside Quebec. The CAI provides a guideline to help businesses draft their privacy policies effectively.
Navigating these requirements while maintaining user-friendly communication is a significant challenge for businesses. This is where a Consent Management Platform (CMP) becomes a game-changer. A CMP enables companies to efficiently manage consent for cookies and other tracking technologies, ensuring compliance with Law 25 while empowering users to exercise their rights.
2 - A Designated Privacy Officer in Every Organization
To reinforce corporate responsibility, Law 25 mandates that all organizations designate a Privacy Officer responsible for overseeing data protection policies and governance. By default, this role falls to the company’s senior executive, but it can be delegated. The Privacy Officer’s contact details must also be publicly accessible.
This individual serves as the go-to authority on data protection matters within the organization, ensuring that internal policies comply with Law 25 and that the company stays ahead of evolving regulations.
3- Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs): A Key Risk Management Tool
Under Law 25, organizations must embed privacy considerations into the design of new projects. This is where Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) come in—an essential tool to evaluate and mitigate potential risks associated with personal data processing.
A PIA is required when launching new initiatives involving the collection, use, sharing, or destruction of personal data, such as website redesigns, new CRM deployments, or the implementation of online tracking and analytics tools.
Additionally, a PIA is mandatory before transferring personal data outside Quebec to ensure adequate data protection measures are in place.
The CAI offers a PIA report template to streamline this process. Being proactive with PIAs not only ensures compliance but also fosters consumer trust by demonstrating a company’s commitment to data privacy.
4 - Responsible Data Management: Use, Sharing, Anonymization, and Deletion
Law 25 imposes stricter regulations on data collection across websites and mobile apps. In cases such as profiling, businesses must obtain explicit, informed consent and clearly disclose what data is collected, why, and what security measures are in place. Companies must also establish data retention policies that align with the original purpose of collection and implement security protocols to prevent unauthorized access, data theft, or loss. Once data is no longer needed, it must be securely deleted.
Alternatively, businesses can opt for data anonymization instead of deletion. This process irreversibly transforms data so it can no longer be linked to an individual. However, achieving full, irreversible anonymization is highly complex. The CAI advises businesses to prioritize secure deletion over anonymization, as truly irreversible anonymization is rarely guaranteed.
Another key aspect of Law 25 is user rights management. Companies must implement procedures for handling data subject requests, including:
- Right of access (users can request a copy of their data)
- Right to rectification (users can request corrections to their data)
- Right to de-indexation (removal of links from search results)
- Data portability (as of September 2024, users can request a structured, commonly used format of their personal data for transfer to another provider)
While businesses are not yet required to ensure full system interoperability, this is expected to become a pressing issue in the near future. Stay tuned—we’ll keep you updated in future editions of Compliance Check-Up!
5 - Choosing the Right CMP: Compliance & User Experience
Beyond legal obligations, public expectations around data privacy are high. A 2022-2023 study found that 87% of Canadians are concerned about how businesses use their personal data to make decisions about them. Compliance with Law 25 isn’t just about avoiding penalties—it’s a strategic opportunity to build trust with customers and partners.
A Consent Management Platform (CMP) can play a crucial role in turning compliance into a positive user experience. Integrated seamlessly into websites and mobile apps, a CMP enables businesses to customize consent banners, align them with their branding, and provide clear, user-friendly explanations of data usage.
By adopting a well-designed CMP, companies don’t just check a regulatory box—they reinforce consumer confidence. And this push for compliance extends far beyond Quebec. Law 25 is just one piece of the global data protection puzzle.
In the next edition of Compliance Check-Up, we’re heading to California, where the CCPA imposes its own set of stringent data privacy regulations. Stay tuned!
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