Personal Information Protection Policy
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This Personal Information Protection Policy complies with BC’s Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA). It outlines the principles and practices we follow in protecting the personal information of members, participants and attendees.
Our privacy commitment includes ensuring the accuracy, confidentiality, and security of personal information. It allows members, participants and attendees to request access to, and make corrections to their personal information.
Personal Information means demographic and psychographic information about an identifiable individual. It does not include membership or registration status or basic contact information. We define basic contact information as: name; FDAC position or title (for example, Board Member); preferred telephone number; preferred email; and social media addresses. Basic contact information is not covered under PIPA, nor is it covered by this policy.
1 – Collecting Personal Information
1.1 As a community-based organisation and cultural hub, we regularly collect personal information to:
- – deliver requested products, services and experiences;
- – track event registrations and enrollments in programs and workshops;
- – identify and track member, participant and attendee preferences;
- – send to, and request information from, members, participants and attendees;
- – contact members, participants and attendees for fundraising purposes;
- – deliver notice of, and confirm membership status at AGMs and Special General Meetings;
- – meet regulatory and grant requirements; and, in general
- – communicate.
1.2 When we require personal information for an unusual or unique reason, we will communicate the purposes for which personal information is being collected, either orally or in writing, before or at the time of collection.
2 – Consent
2.1 We will obtain consent to collect, use or disclose personal information (except where, as noted below, we are authorized to do so without consent).
2.2 Consent can be provided include the methods that apply to your organization: e.g., orally, in writing, electronically it can be implied where the purpose for collecting using or disclosing the personal information would be considered obvious and the person voluntarily provides personal information for that purpose.
2.3 Consent may also be implied where a person is given notice and a reasonable opportunity to opt-out of their personal information being used for mail-outs, the marketing of new services or products, fundraising and the person does not opt-out.
2.4 Subject to certain exceptions (e.g., the personal information is necessary to provide the service or product, or the withdrawal of consent would frustrate the performance of a legal obligation), persons can withhold or withdraw their consent for FDAC to use their personal information in certain ways. A persons’ decision to withhold or withdraw their consent to certain uses of personal information may restrict our ability to provide a particular service or product. If so, we will explain the situation to assist the person in making the decision.
2.5 We may collect, use or disclose personal information without the person’s knowledge or consent in the following limited circumstances:
- – When the collection, use or disclosure of personal information is permitted or required by law;
- – In an emergency that threatens an individual’s life, health, or personal security;
- – When the personal information is available from a public source (e.g., a telephone directory);
- – When we require legal advice from a lawyer;
- – For the purposes of collecting a debt;
- – To protect ourselves from fraud;
3 – Using and Disclosing Personal Information
3.1 We will only use or disclose personal information where necessary to fulfill the purposes identified at the time of collection or for a purpose reasonably related to those purposes such as:
- – To conduct surveys in order to enhance the provision of our services;
- – To contact our members, participants and attendees directly about products and services that may be of interest;
3.2 We will not use or disclose personal information for any additional purpose unless we obtain consent to do so.
3.3 We will not sell member lists or personal information to other parties unless we have consent to do so .
4 – Retaining Personal Information
4.1 If we use personal information to make a decision that directly affects the member, we will retain that personal information for at least one year so that the member has a reasonable opportunity to request access to it.
4.2 Subject to policy 4.1, we will retain personal information only as long as necessary to fulfill the identified purposes or a legal or business purpose.
5 – Ensuring Accuracy of Personal Information
5.1 We will make reasonable efforts to ensure that personal information is accurate and complete where it may be used to make a decision about the person or disclose to another organization.
5.2 People may request correction to their personal information in order to ensure its accuracy and completeness. Submit the request to correct personal information in writing to the Privacy Officer Provide enough detail to identify the personal information and the correction being sought.
5.3 If the personal information is demonstrated to be inaccurate or incomplete, we will correct the information as required and send the corrected information to any organization to which we disclosed the personal information in the previous year. If the correction is not made, we will note the persons’ correction request in the file.
6 – Securing Personal Information
6.1 We are committed to ensuring the security of personal information in order to protect it from unauthorized access, collection, use, disclosure, copying, modification or disposal or similar risks.
6.2 The following security measures will be followed to ensure that personal information is appropriately protected:
FDAC is relying on the security protocols of its data service provider.
6.3 We will use appropriate security measures when destroying personal information such as shredding documents and deleting electronically stored information.
6.4 We will continually review and update our security policies and controls as technology changes to ensure ongoing personal information security.
7 – Providing Access to Personal Information
7.1 Personal information, subject to limited exceptions. When a disclosure would reveal personal information about another individual.
7.2 A request to access personal information must be made in writing to the Privacy Officer, with sufficient detail to identify the personal information being sought.
7.3 Upon request, we will also tell members, participants and attendees how we use their personal information and to whom it has been disclosed if applicable.
7.4 We will make the requested information available within 30 business days, or provide written notice of an extension where additional time is required to fulfill the request.
7.5 If a request is refused in full or in part, we will notify the individual in writing, providing the reasons for refusal and the recourse available to the individual.
8 – Questions and Complaints
8.1 Our Privacy Officer is responsible for ensuring FDAC’s compliance with this policy and the Personal Information Protection Act.
8.2 Our designated Privacy Officer is the Executive Director. They are the individual to whom we’ve designated responsibility for ensuring that FDAC complies with this policy and PIPA.
8.3 People should direct any complaints, concerns or questions regarding FDAC’s compliance in writing to the Privacy Officer. If the Privacy Officer is unable to resolve the concern, the person may also write to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of British Columbia.