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Investigation reports provide the opportunity for the Commissioner to examine
ways in which public bodies are implementing the Act and to offer them guidance
in managing difficult information and privacy issues.
In September 1995, the Commissioner received a complaint from the Vancouver
Sun that the (former) Ministry of Social Services had not responded to its
request for information within the 30-day time-frame, nor had it notified the
newspaper of any extension as required by the Freedom of Information and
Protection of Privacy Act. A review of the situation by the Commissioner's
Office revealed that the Vancouver Sun's situation was not an isolated
event. The Ministry was processing a large number of its requests for general
information beyond the 30-day time-limit. The delays were attributable, in
part, to the cumbersome sign-off procedure within the Ministry, which required
that eight different managers review a file before the Ministry would disclose
records.
The Commissioner's Office discussed the delays with the Ministry and provided
recommendations to remove the procedural hurdles. The Ministry agreed to
implement a number of corrective procedures, including:
The Commissioner was satisfied with the Ministry's efforts to change its
procedures and, now that its responsibilities have been transferred to the
Ministry of Human Resources and the Ministry of Children and Families, expects
both new ministries to meet the time requirements of the Act. With respect to
the Ministry of Children and Families in particular, the Commissioner stated
that he will continue to monitor its sign-off procedures in order to ensure
that further difficulties do not arise from the complex sign-off structure
still in place.
Investigation Report P97-008: Report on an Investigation by the Office of
Information and Privacy Commissioner into Privacy Complaints Concerning the
Career and Personal Planning (CAPP) Curriculum of the Ministry of Education,
Skills and Training (March 3, 1997)
This investigation arose due to numerous privacy complaints to the
Commissioner's Office from parents who were concerned about the potential
invasiveness of the Ministry of Education, Skills and Training's Career and
Personal Planning (CAPP) curriculum into the personal lives of students and
their families and friends.
After an investigation and discussions with the Ministry, the Commissioner
concluded that the CAPP curriculum does not violate the principles and
practices of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
The Commissioner suggested to the Ministry, however, that teachers and students
would benefit from detailed privacy guidelines on the implementation of the
CAPP curriculum, in order to ensure awareness of the standards for appropriate
collection, use, and disclosure of personal information under the Act.
The Commissioner's more detailed recommendations include:
The Ministry accepted the Commissioner's recommendation to create detailed
privacy guidelines for teachers in the implementation of the CAPP curriculum.
Further, some parents had also expressed particular concern about schools
recording students' Personal Education Numbers (PEN) with the apparent purpose
of linking students' names to their CAPP files throughout their school years.
The Ministry indicated that it was prepared to eliminate references to the PEN
in all CAPP materials.
Investigation Report P97-008: Complaints Against the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia Concerning the Customer Satisfaction Survey (March 18, 1997)
This investigation arose due to privacy complaints from individuals who had
been contacted by a survey research company following their participation in
the insurance claim process. The complainants objected to the Insurance
Corporation of British Columbia's disclosure of their personal information to
the company.
After an investigation and discussions with ICBC, the Commissioner concluded
that ICBC's practices do not violate the Freedom of Information and
Protection of Privacy Act. He recommended, however, that ICBC notify
insured drivers that, as customers of the Crown corporation, they may be
contacted by survey research companies that it contracts with to perform
customer service surveys. The Commissioner also recommended that ICBC provide
insured drivers with written notice of their right to "opt-out" of being
contacted for survey research.
The Commissioner stated that: "The right to `opt-out' of the survey research
program gives insured drivers better control over the use of their personal
information. Survey research is an important function of ICBC, as well as of
many of the Crown corporations in British Columbia. I support these survey
research programs, as long as they use personal information strictly within the
guidelines of the Act."
The report also detailed further recommendations, such as that ICBC should not
provide its survey research contractor with the licence plates numbers or
insurance policy numbers of insurance claimants, or any other personal
information not strictly necessary for its customer service surveys. It also
called for all public bodies to incorporate the privacy provisions of the
Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act into contracts with
private sector bodies.
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