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News release

Privacy Commissioner of Canada hosts successful meetings of G7 Data Protection and Privacy Authorities Roundtable

June 19, 2025 – Chelsea, Quebec

Prioritizing privacy throughout the lifecycle of a technology, from design to development to deployment, can allow organizations to unleash innovation, seize market opportunities, and do so in a cost-effective way, the G7 Data Protection and Privacy Authorities (DPA) Roundtable said in a joint statement Thursday.

The joint statement concluded two days of meetings hosted by Privacy Commissioner of Canada Philippe Dufresne in the national capital region. This meeting followed the G7 Leaders’ Summit held earlier this week in Kananaskis, Alberta.

The data protection and privacy authorities from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union welcomed the G7 Leaders’ Statement on AI for Prosperity, which set out a shared vision recognizing the potential of a human-centric approach to artificial intelligence to grow prosperity, benefit societies and address pressing global challenges.

In their joint statement, the G7 data protection authorities emphasized that responsible innovation, where privacy considerations are built in at the start, can support confidence and trust in the digital world and be a driver of economic success and societal growth. The protection of children’s best interests is particularly important with respect to the protection of children online.

Commissioner Dufresne with other G7 data protection commissioners and privacy authorities in Canada’s National Capital Region.
G7 Data Protection and Privacy Authorities met on June 18 and 19 in Canada’s National Capital Region. The event was hosted by Privacy Commissioner of Canada Philippe Dufresne.

In a separate communiqué, the G7 data protection authorities said that they are committed to engaging with experts and partner networks to foster a trusted digital environment for all – a commitment that was on full display during the Roundtable meetings.

Highlights of the Roundtable meeting included keynote speeches from Professor Yoshua Bengio, whose discoveries led to modern generative artificial intelligence, and Dr. Martin Laforest, a leading expert in quantum technology.

Since the first meeting of the G7 DPA Roundtable in 2021, the strategic focus for the group has been on data free flow with trust, enforcement cooperation, and privacy and emerging technology.

On Tuesday, Commissioner Dufresne and U.K. Information Commissioner John Edwards demonstrated enforcement cooperation in practice with the announcement of the findings of their joint investigation into a data breach at global direct-to-consumer genetic testing company 23andMe, which affected nearly 7 million people worldwide, including almost 320,000 Canadians.

Quotes

“In the digital age, protecting privacy requires global coordination. Sharing knowledge and expertise, jointly examining emerging issues, and working together to advance common standards can provide greater consistency for organizations operating across multiple jurisdictions. And greater consistency means better privacy protection for individuals.”

“Data is power and protecting it is paramount. As this new digital economy continues to grow, I look forward to continuing to work with domestic and international partners to develop and champion privacy principles that meet the demands of this pivotal moment for privacy. A unified global stance on privacy sets the standard for a safer and more secure digital world and supports companies as well as citizens.”

Philippe Dufresne
Privacy Commissioner of Canada

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Media contact

Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
communications@priv.gc.ca

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