My name is Ian Linkletter, I’m a librarian from Vancouver, BC. On September 2nd, 2020, I was sued for copyright infringement by Proctorio, Incorporated because I cited and linked to their own YouTube videos in 7 critical tweets. This website compiles my statements and updates related to Proctorio’s lawsuit, which has continued now for almost five years.

This kind of lawsuit, in which a company like Proctorio sues someone to silence criticism, is often called a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (or “SLAPP“). Proctorio’s lawsuit is one of the greatest threats to academic freedom in Canada. It’s a strategic lawsuit against fair dealing. Proctorio’s objective is to weaponize the Copyright Act as a tool for censorship. Anyone could be targeted like I was, but only the wealthy can afford to launch such attacks. In Canada, the maximum penalty for non-commercial copyright infringement is $5000. Sharing a link is not copyright infringement.

From 2020 to 2024 my application under the Protection of Public Participation Act was considered by all levels of court in Canada. My application was partially allowed. Proctorio’s allegations of “circumvention of technological protection measures” and copyright infringement for the sharing of a screenshot were dismissed. Additionally, Proctorio’s interim interlocutory without notice ex parte injunction was modified to make clear that I can share anything publicly available. The rest of my application was not successful and Proctorio’s lawsuit has been allowed to proceed. None of Proctorio’s allegations have been proven at trial.

Find me on Bluesky or Mastodon. The lawsuit itself is about my Twitter account, specifically 7 tweets from August 23rd and 24th, 2020. My legal filings and subsequent judgments can be found right here at defence.linkletter.org. I can be contacted by members of the press at press@linkletter.org.

Media Coverage

The best news coverage about Proctorio’s SLAPP has come from UBC’s student newspaper, The Ubyssey.

EFF – Student Surveillance Vendor Proctorio Files SLAPP Lawsuit to Silence A Critic (2021)

The Guardian – ‘I’m afraid’: critics of anti-cheating technology for students hit by lawsuits (2022)

The Guardian – Are your kids being spied on? The rise of anti-cheating software in US schools (2024)

Inside Higher Ed – Proctorio Loses Appeal in Lawsuit Against Academic Critic (2022)

Techdirt – Canadian Court Allows Distance Learning Spyware Seller To Continue Silencing One Of Its Many Critics (2023)

The New Yorker – Is Online Test-Monitoring Here to Stay? (2021)

Vancouver Sun – UBC employee being sued by U.S. software company files anti-SLAPP application (2020)

The Verge – An ed-tech specialist spoke out about remote testing software — and now he’s being sued (2020)

VICE Motherboard – An Exam Surveillance Company Is Trying to Silence Critics With Lawsuits (2020)

VICE Motherboard – Proctorio Is Doubling Down On Lawsuits Against Its Critics (2021)

Vox – How teachers are sacrificing student privacy to stop cheating (2020)

The Washington Post – Cheating-detection companies made millions during the pandemic. Now students are fighting back. (2020)

Judgments

Proctorio, Incorporated v. Linkletter, 2021 BCSC 1154

Proctorio, Incorporated v Linkletter, 2022 BCSC 400

Proctorio, Incorporated v. Linkletter, 2022 BCCA 150

Linkletter v. Proctorio, Incorporated, 2022 BCCA 313

Linkletter v. Proctorio, Incorporated, 2023 BCCA 160

Ian Linkletter v. Proctorio, Incorporated, 2024 (SCC)

Public Statements

October 16, 2020 – Statement to Media

March 2, 2021 – Statement to Media

September 2, 2021 – Letter to Senators and thousands of student reviews of Proctorio (16MB PDF)

SLAPP Updates

From October 16th, 2020 to April 2021 I raised over $85,000 CAD from GoFundMe and a Teach-In Against Surveillance organized in my defence. I have been keeping the almost 1000 people who donated apprised of my legal journey. These are my updates.