[dow3] ICANN WHOIS - DOW Task Force #3

["Philippa Lawson" <plawson@xxxxxxxxxx>]

We endorse the following comments drafted by EPIC on the DOW for Task Force
#3:

The description of work for this Task Force incorrectly assumes that all
information under all circumstances must be accurate.  There may be public
policy reasons, including human rights concerns, that require exceptions to
such a rule.  It is critical that the Task Force description of work be
modified to include an evaluation of such situations.

Further, the description of work misinterprets the term "data quality" (a
Principle of the 1980 OECD Privacy Guidelines,
http://www1.oecd.org/publications/e-book/9302011E.PDF), and in doing so
distorts and minimizes data quality protections.  The full definition of
"data quality" must be included in this description of work, and its range
of protections evaluated by this Task Force.

Proposed changes to Task Force 3 Description of Work:

1. Under Description of Task Force, after paragraph 3, add:
"The principle of data quality is: 'personal data should be relevant to the
purposes for which they are to be used, and, to the extent necessary for
those purposes, should be accurate, complete and kept up-to-date.'  OECD
Principles, see, e.g.,
http://www.anu.edu.au/people/Roger.Clarke/DV/OECDPs.html.";

2.   Current Paragraph 4 (to follow insertion above), should then be
modified to include the text in brackets below:

"The main issues associated with data quality include:
- [collection of personal data only relevant for the purposes for which they
are being used];
- verification of data at the time of registration;
 - ongoing maintenance of data during the period of registration;
 - protecting against deliberate submission of false information [except in
those situations where the globally available nature of the WHOIS data
should require exceptions for public policy and human rights reasons.]


3.  To the Tasks/Milestones sections, we strongly recommend modifying the
text of sections 2 and 4, to include the text in brackets below:
- "collect publicly available information on the techniques used by other
online service providers (to verify that data collected is correct) as well
as information on the price of services, offered by the online service
provider [as well as information on the level of privacy protection accorded
the data, including to whom and under what circumstances the data is
provided];"
- "determine whether any changes are required in the contracts to specify
what data verification is necessary at time of collection to improve
accuracy [and what exceptions based on public policy and
human rights should be included].

Philippa Lawson
Executive Director
Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC)
University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law
57 Louis Pasteur
Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5
tel: (613) 562-5800 x.2556
fax: (613) 562-5417
email: plawson@xxxxxxxxxx