Recommendations for Government Leaders

Government leadership is essential to closing the public trust gap. From federal to provincial to municipal levels, public sector action sets the tone for digital transformation and provides the foundation for private sector innovation to thrive.

Prioritize Digital Trust in Critical Areas

Government should prioritize digital trust in four areas critical to Canada’s leadership and the privacy, security, and protection of Canadians:

Strengthening cybersecurity infrastructure: Every breach erodes public trust and creates more reluctance to adopt digital services. Invest in robust security measures and rapid breach response
Supporting digital economic prosperity: Digital trust capabilities unlock economic growth. Canada risks falling behind global competitors without decisive action
Enabling efficient, modern public service delivery: Citizens and residents vocalize frustrations with services that aren’t modernized. They’re looking to government to lead
Protecting citizens from identity theft and fraud: Rising online threats demand proactive government response with better verification tools

Implementation approach: Establish clear mandates, allocate dedicated funding, set measurable targets, and report progress publicly.

Foster Collaborative Governance

Continue work with collaborative bodies such as joint councils of federal and provincial CIOs and public sector delivery leads to support synergies.

Key collaborative actions:

Strengthen existing councils: Empower CIO and delivery councils with authority to drive coordinated action
Emphasize frameworks and standards: Position trust frameworks as central to strategy as private sector moves forward
Share best practices: Create mechanisms for jurisdictions to learn from each other’s successes and challenges
Align procurement: Coordinate requirements across jurisdictions to drive market adoption of standards
Engage ministers: Bring political leadership into dialogue to ensure priorities and resources align

Recognition: Essential work is already happening at joint councils. The challenge is ensuring adequate resources and political support to accelerate progress.

Advance and Modernize Privacy Legislation

Modernize jurisdictional privacy legislation to align with 21st-century realities while ensuring adequate consultation and transparency in the development process.

Legislative priorities:

Data portability rights: Ensure citizens can move their data between services
User control provisions: Legislate meaningful user control over personal data
Breach notification: Require timely, transparent breach disclosure
Consent frameworks: Update consent requirements for digital context
Enforcement mechanisms: Provide regulators with tools and resources
Interoperability requirements: Mandate open standards where appropriate

Consultation approach: Wide adoption of frameworks will be essential as privacy legislation evolves. Engage stakeholders early and meaningfully.

Demonstrate Radical Transparency

Once a decision is made about proceeding with digital trust capabilities, be as transparent as possible with citizens about how systems work, what data is collected, and how it’s protected.

Transparency in practice:

Plain language explanations: Describe systems in terms citizens understand
Open documentation: Publish technical specifications and privacy assessments
Public reporting: Regular updates on adoption, incidents, and improvements
Accessible data: Let citizens see what data government holds about them
Independent audits: Commission and publish third-party reviews
Feedback mechanisms: Create clear channels for public input and concerns

Why this matters: Transparency breeds trust. People are more likely to adopt services when they understand and can verify how their data is protected.

Start with High-Impact, Lower-Risk Services

Focus on advancing digital identity in smaller government programs where people can see quick wins to build confidence before tackling more complex or sensitive use cases.

Good starting points:

Business licensing and permits
Library cards and community services
Recreation program registration
Transit passes and parking permits
Event ticketing for government facilities

Then progress to:

Benefits applications and renewals
License renewals (drivers, professionals)
Tax filing and credential verification
Healthcare record access

Ensure Adequate Resources and Political Support

Digital transformation requires sustained investment and political will. One challenge with any government is there are always too many priorities and never enough money.

Resource requirements:

Dedicated budgets: Multi-year funding for digital trust infrastructure
Skilled workforce: Recruit and retain digital identity expertise
Technology investment: Modern systems that prioritize privacy and security
Education and outreach: Sustained public awareness campaigns
Standards development: Support for framework creation and maintenance

Address Jurisdictional Coordination

Different provinces are at different points in the journey, and there’s consensus that federal government is lagging. A nuanced, collaborative approach is needed.

Coordination strategies:

Respect provincial autonomy: No one-size-fits-all federal mandate
Enable interoperability: Ensure provincial solutions can work together
Share infrastructure: Create common components provinces can leverage
Fund pilot projects: Support provincial innovation with federal resources
Facilitate learning: Connect advanced provinces with those starting out

The Federal Government Role

If Canada is going to be a modern digital society and economy, Canadians must understand what they can expect about data that exists about them in both the public and private sectors.

Canadian governments should not ‘hit pause’ on digital trust and verification—they should be investing in truly unlocking digital capabilities. Investing in digital trust and verification not only makes economic sense but also establishes digital tools to support societal trust, provides security, strengthens privacy, and mitigates fraud. This is a win for all.

Learning from International Experience

Examples from countries like Estonia and New Zealand show that better experience in digital government services leads to greater trust in government to handle people’s information. This creates a positive reinforcing cycle.

Key lessons:

Start with user needs, not technology
Invest in excellent service design
Be transparent about how systems work
Demonstrate value quickly and repeatedly
Maintain physical alternatives during transition
Listen and adapt based on feedback