Daily Archives: Jul 23, 2019

Letters from the President: The Importance of Transparency in DIACC’s Pan-Canadian Trust Framework (PCTF) Development

Transparency, accountability, and inclusion, these are critical not only to the PCTF, but also to the process by which it is developed.

Inclusive, open, and meets broad stakeholder needs

Just as an identity ecosystem must be open and broad in stakeholder engagement, so too must be the self-governing body that delivers the interoperability framework and supporting materials. The body must include varying orders of government and diverse industry stakeholders across Canada and the international stage. DIACC members and the public must have transparency regarding not only the deliverables, but also in clear rules around how engagement is fostered and ultimately to how votes are taken and how decisions are made. 

Transparent in governance and operation

Building on the above principle, an identity ecosystem must also be transparent in its operations, and governance. DIACC takes pride in a transparent approach in developing and delivering materials, with all parties having full clarity throughout every step of the process.

Although transparency and openness are often closely associated, they are not one and the same. Openness means that any individual or organization can participate, and DIACC achieves this through reviews of each draft of the PCTF. This is also evident by our collaborative document reviews that have progressed at an accelerated pace over the past six months. 

Transparency, on the other hand, relates to:

  • How clearly members can see how DIACC’s work is developing
  • What is the governance for the development of the work 
  • How submitted comments are tracked and handled 
  • Who our members are, and what benefits are offered to them 
  • What is our “why” for existing

To ensure fair practice, organizations that seek to connect the interests of diverse participants who have similar priorities with differing areas of focus need to have clear and transparent rules for operation. 

The transparency in our collaborative governance helps to ensure that our work is not just another rubber stamping exercise, but rather our deliverables are strongly vetted by diverse Pan-Canadian and international stakeholders to deliver the best possible framework that delivers value to our public and private sectors.

This buy-in is necessary to truly transform Canada, with solutions built on standards that are force multipliers toward realizing a digital-first country. It is crucial to have perspectives from various parties, including service providers and service consumers. 

We continually review and revise our operational policies to ensure that they meet the needs of all stakeholders and provide the basis of good governance and fair practices across our organization. 

The PCTF Model 3 Draft Recommendation V1.0 recently closed, and based on the input received, DIACC plans to modify and make improvements to this draft, as well as expand on, clarify, and refine its content. 

The PCTF Community Editing team will work with DIACC’s Trust Framework Expert Committee (TFEC) to review and resolve comments received, and will then work towards the next iteration of this draft. The open review period for the Privacy Conformance Profile and Component Overview Discussion Drafts is set to begin on August 6.

To be a part of the change you want to see, stay informed about happenings in the digital identity space, learn more about how you can contribute to discussion drafts or become a member, contact us! 

Spotlight on Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC)

What is the mission and vision of CDIC?

CDIC is a global leader in deposit insurance and resolution.  We are a federal Crown corporation – a part of the Government of Canada – that protects eligible deposits at each of our member financial institutions (banks, trust and loan companies, associations governed by the Cooperative Credit Associations Act that take deposits, and federal credit unions).  In addition, CDIC is Canada’s resolution authority, which means we take the lead in handling the failure of our members – from smallest to largest – to protect eligible deposits.

Why is trustworthy digital identity critical for existing and emerging markets?

Canadians perform billions of transactions through our member institutions each year. A trustworthy digital identity would provide Canadians with confidence that their data is being used as intended and in a secure manner when transacting digitally.

As a deposit insurer and resolution authority, during a failure, CDIC would require line of sight to accurate deposit and depositor data so money can be quickly and securely reimbursed.  A digital identity could be used to authenticate a depositor online to assure CDIC that payment is going to the right depositor at the right time.

How will digital identity transform the Canadian and global economy?  How does CDIC address challenges associated with this transformation?

We believe Canadians should have choice in how they receive information, as well as payments – even in the event of a bank failure.

CDIC strives to stay abreast of trends and appetites of its stakeholders, particularly eligible depositors, and routinely maintains and modernizes its reimbursement processes to optimize information and payments available to Canadians in the event of a failure.   A digital identity would help to expand our depth of online services to Canadians and reduce the potential for fraud or misuse of sensitive data so that depositors can have choice and control of payment methods. 

What role does Canada have to play as a leader in this space?

CDIC is part of the federal financial safety net helping to ensure a stable financial system and a healthy economy.  We know that financial services are critical to all Canadians and digital financial services are proliferating at a significant pace.  Participating in the development of a digital identity framework supports our mandate to act for the benefit of depositors and contribute to financial stability. 

Why did CDIC join DIACC?

CDIC joined DIACC to inform our transformation journey and to contribute to thought-leadership in digital authentication, which affects the depositors we protect and the members institutions we regulate.

What else should we know about CDIC?

Since 1967, we have handled 43 member institution failures that touched over 2 million Canadians. And throughout that time, no depositor has lost a single dollar that was protected by CDIC.

As Canadians think about their futures and the security of their money, they should rest assured that CDIC will be there to protect their savings at all our member institutions.