Information & Ethics committee  Exactly.

Information & Ethics committee  Again, the private sector is different because of the legislative requirements. I think the key for considering having a biometric type of device is, similar to the NEXUS model, that it's really a consent-based model. That would be pivotal, because requiring a biometric of all Canadians, I think, would be a very challenging path to go down.

Information & Ethics committee  It's a really good point, making sure that you have that risk-benefit paradigm and giving people the option, making it transparent. Certainly, if it is an option for citizens and they are adopting it as part of making their lives more convenient, I think it would be something worth exploring.

Information & Ethics committee  Yes.

Information & Ethics committee  Everything is going to be a cost-benefit analysis. First of all, there's no such thing as absolute, perfect security. To achieve even close to perfect security will impact not only the financial aspect but also the utility of a service, so you have to really take a balanced approach.

Information & Ethics committee  I would like to suggest a few things. In my comments, I had suggested having a maturity model and actually realizing that you can't do everything all at once, so have patience, in terms of how you are going to achieve a goal of having a digital service, having a digital government and ultimately, a digital society.

Information & Ethics committee  I would like to suggest the importance of shared intelligence. I think that, going into a digital transformation for the government, you will have cyber-attacks. There will be threats. I think that's a given, so it's ensuring that you have designed security into the systems at the very beginning and not looking at it as one type of control, but rather a multi-layered set of controls.

Information & Ethics committee  Good afternoon. I would like to thank you, Mr. Chair, and also the members of the committee, for the opportunity to speak with you today on such an important topic and to share perspectives as the government endeavours to understand how to improve services for Canadians while also protecting their privacy and their security.