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New
Personal Information Protection Laws
as of January 1, 2004
By John Boon, Intelquest Ventures Inc.
On January 1, 2004 all organizations in Canada
that collect, use or disclose personal information
in the course of commercial activity will have
to comply with the federal Personal Information
Protection and Electronic Documents Act. For
some organizations, the proposed BC Personal
Information Protection Act (or other provincial
law) will apply in addition to or in place of
the federal law. It does not have the same reference
to "commercial activity" and applies
broadly to business and not-for-profit organizations
and employment relationships.
The need to comply with these laws goes beyond
the need to avoid regulatory penalties and litigation.
Managing personal information in accordance
with the expectations of clients and other stakeholders
is essential to building trust and a good corporate
reputation. If privacy is not protected, the
potential of the Internet and the New Economy
may not be realized (Business Week, March 1998).
Under these laws, organizations must be accountable
for personal information they control and have
a compliance officer, privacy policies and related
procedures, review systems and training programs.
Collections, uses and disclosures must be reasonable
and in accordance with the Act. The purposes
for the collection must be identified and collections
must be limited to what is necessary for these
purposes. Subject individuals must be made aware
of the identified purposes and give informed
consent to the collection, use or disclosure
- unless exceptions apply.
Information must be accurate, up-to-date and
secured. Compliance systems must be open to
scrutiny and challenge. Upon request, individuals
must be informed of the existence, use or disclosure
of their personal information and given access
to it.
Business In Vancouver Article by John Boon
John Boon is President of Intelquest
Ventures Inc., a provider of information-management
consulting and training services.
john.boon@telus.net
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