Conservatives vote down proposed changes to online surveillance bill

OTTAWA – The Conservatives defeated several proposals from opposition MPs that would have tempered federal cyberbullying legislation.

Many critics say the bill would make it too easy for police, spies and others to monitor the public’s online activities.

The legislation would make it illegal to distribute intimate images without consent and remove barriers to getting such pictures scrubbed from the Internet.

However, it also overhauls the existing system of production orders and warrants, and would give authorities new tools to track and trace telecommunications to determine their origin or destination.

At the Commons justice committee, opposition MPs said the bill unduly lowers the threshold for obtaining some personal information and lacks requirement that agencies report on their use of the new powers.

The Conservative majority on the Commons justice committee ensured the defeat of almost all of their proposed amendments.

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