
Border authority absolved of improperly gathering personal data from blog
An individual complained that the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) improperly collected information from his personal online blog after his term position ended. The complainant alleged that his tracking device showed visits from government computers. The OPC investigated whether the CBSA had inappropriately collected personal information. The investigation found that several CBSA employees had viewed the blog, but did so in a personal capacity, which was deemed to accord with the government's Acceptable Use Policy. The OPC found no evidence that the agency had collected personal information in connection with these visits. Therefore, the complaints were determined to be not well-founded.
- 1Whether the Canada Border Services Agency improperly collected personal information from the complainant's blog
- 2Whether employees viewing a public blog from government workstations constitutes collection of personal information by the agency
- Collection of personal information: No evidence of collection by institution
- Appropriate use of information: Employee viewing was in personal capacity
- Complaint outcome: Complaint not well-founded
Complaint not well-founded
The OPC found no evidence that the CBSA, as an institution, collected personal information. Employees viewed the publicly available blog in a personal capacity, which was permissible under government policy.
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