NDP blasts Ford's plan to sell transit riders' data to sponsors

Official Opposition has written to Information and Privacy Commissioner

TORONTO — The NDP says that Doug Ford's plan to sell off riders' data as part of a naming-rights offer for Metrolinx trains and stations is a major privacy concern, and the NDP will fight it. Deputy Leader of the Official Opposition, Sara Singh, has sent a letter to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario asking that office to step in.

According to media reports, naming rights for Metrolinx GO stations, trains, and rest areas could all be auctioned off including a much more valuable part of the sale: rider data.

"Ontario families don't want their data — or their children's data —sold off to private corporations," said Singh. "We'd like the privacy commissioner to step in and offer an opinion, and ultimately, we'd like Doug Ford to take this proposal off the table, before private corporations can track our movements using our presto cards."

Singh said that such a shocking proposal should have some input directly from the people of Ontario, but instead of Ford coming clean on the data sale, or the naming rights sale, it was revealed by media on Aug. 1.

"Is Doug Ford trying to pull a fast one on Ontarians, selling our data without even notifying us?" Singh asked.