PrivCom finds IP address constitutes "personal information"

In a recently released finding, the Canadian Privacy Commissioner determined that the complainant's IP address constituted "personal information" under the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), since it could be linked to the complainant by the ISP. The complainant had alleged that his ISP was breaching PIPEDA by refusing to route his outgoing e-mail messages unless they were sent via the ISP's own mail servers. His complaint was unsuccessful.