Private Eyes

In its 2002–03 annual report, the Security Intelligence Review Committee first acknowledged that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service had “reorganized its operational structure” and begun to “deploy resources in novel ways,” including through “relationships with organizations not subject to the Committee’s review.” Documents in subsequent years referred to (equally vague) “non-traditional partners” and the need to manage “relations with the private sector.” What this all meant, specifically, remains cloaked in secrecy. But in general, when it comes to keeping the public safe at the national or the street level, there has been a steady shift toward external partnerships, processes, and technologies. Some of these associations are with well-meaning non-profits, others with private companies focused on the bottom line. Regardless, they have implications for the human rights and civil liberties of all Canadians.