The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) has announced it is joining the Global Cooperation Arrangement for Privacy Enforcement (Global CAPE) to tackle worldwide data and privacy issues.

Joining Global CAPE is a requirement for the Canadian government’s membership of the Global Cross-Border Privacy Rules Forum (Global CBPR), which it signed up to in April 2022 alongside Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, and the US.

Global CAPE was established in 2023 by the Global CBPR, and is a voluntary, non-binding arrangement that allows the member organizations to cooperate in cross-border data protection and privacy enforcement actions.

The collaboration includes collaborating with collecting evidence, sharing information on an organization or event that’s being investigated, enforcing actions, and transferring complaints to other jurisdictions.

Safeguarding people’s privacy

Close after signing, Mexico also joined as a member, and the UK has joined as an associate.

“The ICO’s association with the Global CAPE is an important step in strengthening our relationship with other countries so we can work together to tackle global data protection and privacy issues,” said John Edwards, UK Information Commissioner.

“Personal information of UK people often moves between countries, so it’s vital that we work with our key international partners to design solutions that safeguard people’s privacy wherever they are based.”

Other countries are also expected to join the Global CAPE.