Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act - Overview

Overview

"Personal Information", as specified in PIPEDA, is as follows: information about an identifiable individual, but does not include the name, title or business address or telephone number of an employee of an organization.

The law gives individuals the right to

• know why an organization collects, uses or discloses their personal information;
• expect an organization to collect, use or disclose their personal information reasonably and appropriately, and not use the information for any purpose other than that to which they have consented;
• know who in the organization is responsible for protecting their personal information;
• expect an organization to protect their personal information by taking appropriate security measures;
• expect the personal information an organization holds about them to be accurate, complete and up-to-date;
• obtain access to their personal information and ask for corrections if necessary; and
• complain about how an organization handles their personal information if they feel their privacy rights have not been respected.

The law requires organizations to

• obtain consent when they collect, use or disclose their personal information;
• supply an individual with a product or a service even if they refuse consent for the collection, use or disclosure of your personal information unless that information is essential to the transaction;
• collect information by fair and lawful means; and
• have personal information policies that are clear, understandable and readily available.