OpenAI challenging B.C. privacy order for details of Tumbler Ridge shooting

CBC News reports that OpenAI is suing to quash an investigation launched in June by B.C.'s Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner (OIPC) into the Tumbler Ridge shooting.[2]According to CP24, the petition asks the court to quash the investigation in its entirety or, alternatively, to find the order unreasonable, quash it and set it aside.[3]Business in Vancouver reports that OpenAI's petition states that "a tragedy, however grave, cannot give a privacy regulator expertise over online safety."[4] CP24 reports that the petition calls the order "sweeping," "overbroad" and "unnecessary."[3]CBC reports that OpenAI argues it should not have to face a "duplicative second investigation"[2] after a national inquiry by privacy regulators.The Canadian Press reports that the privacy office says its probe looks at whether OpenAI's use of personal information was appropriate, "including the potential for responses to influence behaviour."[1]According to The Canadian Press, Van Rootselaar killed eight people last Feb. 10, including five students and an educational assistant at the local secondary school before she fatally shot herself.[1] The agency also reports that OpenAI shut down the shooter's ChatGPT account in June 2025 after it was flagged for concerning behaviour, but the company did not notify police.[1]CBC reports that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman wrote a letter of apology to the community of Tumbler Ridge for failing to notify authorities in Canada about the activity.[2] The Canadian Press reports that several victims and their families have filed lawsuits against the tech firm.[1]