MADRID, November 2 /PRNewswire/ -- An all-star cast of international privacy professionals will gather in Madrid today to consider how the concept of Privacy by Design can be employed in their own jurisdictions. Dr. Ann Cavoukian, Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, Canada (IPC) and Yoram Hacohen, Head of the Israeli Law, Information and Technology Authority (ILITA), are co-hosting Privacy by Design: The Definitive Workshop.

The pre-conference event will capitalize on the world's leading privacy experts meeting together in Madrid for the 31st International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners. Attendees will be urged to become Privacy by Design Ambassadors by identifying areas that intersect with personally identifiable information in their own organizations, and working toward building in the principles of Privacy by Design.

Commissioner Cavoukian's Privacy by Design concept is based on embedding privacy into the design of new technologies, business practices and infrastructure by proactively treating privacy as the default, rather than adding protection after-the-fact.

Privacy by Design: The Definitive Workshop is a one-day event featuring a number of distinguished Commissioners, including: Peter Hustinx, European Data Protection Supervisor; Peter Schaar, Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information - Germany; Dr. Alexander Dix, Berlin Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information; Marie Shroff, New Zealand Privacy Commissioner; Stephen Lau, former Hong Kong Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data; Malcolm Crompton, former Australian Privacy Commissioner; Pamela Jones-Harbour, Commissioner, U.S. Federal Trade Commission; and Mozelle W. Thompson, former Commissioner, U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

The event is sponsored by Intel, the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID), Facebook, Oracle, Google and Impinj. Exhibitors include Nymity, NAID, University of Toronto, McAfee, Impinj and the Rick Hansen Spinal Cord Injury Registry.

Three Privacy by Design white papers co-authored by the IPC will be launched today:

- Remote Home Health Care Technologies: How to Ensure Privacy? - co-authored by Intel and GE Healthcare; - Privacy by Design: Essential for Organizational Accountability and Strong Business Practices - co-authored by Hewlett-Packard and The Centre for Information and Policy Leadership; and - A Pragmatic Approach to Privacy Risk Optimization - co-authored by Nymity.

When I first developed Privacy by Design back in the '90s, it was never intended to live in an ivory tower. I thought it could bring about real changes in our everyday lives with respect to protecting privacy, says Commissioner Cavoukian. The protection of privacy and personal information cannot be treated as a regional issue. Privacy transcends jurisdictions - technology knows no bounds.

For example, this year Commissioner Cavoukian worked with Max Snijder, CEO of the European Biometrics Forum, to produce The Relevance of Untraceable Biometrics and Biometric Encryption, a paper on the use of biometrics for authentication purposes - an issue currently at the forefront in countries including Israel, the Netherlands and Canada. The paper will be released today as part of a special biometric and national identification documents panel.

The objective of Privacy by Design is to ensure that privacy is protected now, and well into the future, adds Yoram Hacohen. In many cases, this can be achieved through the use of Privacy-Enhancing Technologies (PETs) - technologies that protect privacy without adversely impacting business operations. If we change the paradigm to allow the existence of privacy alongside functionality, then the future of privacy grows more certain.

Privacy can no longer be assured solely by compliance with regulatory frameworks, says Commissioner Cavoukian. Rather, we must strive to make privacy - the cornerstone of our rights and freedoms - the default mode of operation - globally.

For more information, please visit http://www.privacybydesign.ca.

Media wanting to attend, receive information from the Workshop or arrange an interview, please contact:

Canada: Angus Fisher Desk: +1(416)-326-3902 Cell: +1(416)-627-0307 angus.fisher@ipc.on.ca Europe: Estella Cohen Cell: +1(416)-317-6263 Estella.cohen@ipc.on.ca

SOURCE: Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner/Ontario and ILITA

CONTACT: Media wanting to attend, receive information from the Workshop orarrange an interview, please contact: Canada: Angus Fisher, Desk:+1(416)-326-3902, Cell: +1(416)-627-0307, angus.fisher@ipc.on.ca; Europe:Estella Cohen, Cell: +1(416)-317-6263, Estella.cohen@ipc.on.ca