Legal Issues

Awareness is the best defence. Businesses should keep informed about "cyberlaw" issues. You should have a clear concept of your business goals and marketing strategy with respect to Internet use and how these activities might create legal difficulties.

Principles and Guidelines for Businesses

Guidelines of good business principles have been developed for organizations doing business online. This section examines the Canadian Code of Practice for Consumer Protection in Electronic Commerce and provides a summary of the eight established principles.

Areas of Law

Areas of law that apply directly to electronic commerce and the Internet fall into the following categories:

• Consumer Protection
  Electronic commerce raises issues of consumer protection that have legal implications. Marketing and advertising, for example, are covered under the Competition Act. The Act, enforced by the Competition Bureau, is applicable to the Internet.
• Privacy
  The use of personal information in Canadian commercial activities is protected by federal legislation under the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), which was enacted to alleviate consumer concerns about privacy and to allow Canada's business community to compete in the global digital economy.
• Intellectual Property Law
  In Canada, intellectual property is protected by law, equally offline and online. There are a number of distinct categories that protect intellectual property.
• Criminal Law
  Content publishers need to be aware that the Internet is governed by the same rules as the country. In Canada, what is illegal offline is illegal online.
• Contract Law, Jurisdiction and Taxation
  Awareness of contract law, jurisdiction and taxation will protect organizations as they do business online.

Web Site Legal Audit

This list of key questions may help small businesses think about how to design their Web site and other business activities on the Internet to minimize or eliminate the potential for problems.

Cyberlaw Resources

Links to cyberlaw reference sites including general, consumer protection, privacy, intellectual property and taxation resources.