Federal (Canada) privacy & access decisions

This joint investigation by the OPC, CAI, OIPC-BC, and OIPC-AB examined OpenAI OpCo, LLC's compliance with federal and provincial privacy laws regarding its ChatGPT service. The Offices investigated OpenAI's collection, use, and disclosure of personal information for model training, consent practices, openness, accuracy, individual rights (access, correction, deletion), data retention, and accountability. While OpenAI challenged jurisdiction and argued for implied consent, the Offices largely found contraventions in its initial practices, particularly concerning the overbroad collection of personal information from public sources and user interactions without valid consent or sufficient transparency. However, in response to the preliminary report, OpenAI committed to implementing significant privacy-enhancing measures, including a new filtering tool for training data, improved transparency, and enhanced individual rights processes. Consequently, the OPC found the matter well-founded and conditionally resolved under PIPEDA, expecting continued implementation and improvement of these measures. The OIPC-AB and OIPC-BC, due to stricter provincial consent requirements, found the consent issues well-founded and unresolved, while the CAI had mixed outcomes, also finding some issues unresolved. The Offices will monitor OpenAI's implementation of the agreed-upon recommendations.

• Whether the Offices had jurisdiction over OpenAI's activities under federal and provincial privacy laws.
• Whether OpenAI collected, used, and disclosed personal information for purposes that a reasonable person would consider appropriate in the circumstances.
• Whether OpenAI obtained valid consent for the collection and use of personal information from publicly accessible websites and licensed third-party sources for model training.
• Whether OpenAI obtained valid consent and met its obligation to inform individuals with respect to the collection and use of personal information included in their interactions with ChatGPT.
• Whether OpenAI obtained valid consent and met its obligation to inform individuals with respect to the disclosure of personal information collected from various sources via ChatGPT.
• Whether OpenAI was sufficiently open and transparent about its models and information handling practices.
• Whether OpenAI took reasonable steps to ensure that the information it generates about individuals is as accurate, complete, and up-to-date as is necessary for the purposes for which it is to be used.
• Whether OpenAI provided individuals with the ability to obtain access to their personal information.
• Whether OpenAI provided individuals with the ability to correct their personal information.
• Whether OpenAI provided individuals with the ability to remove/delete their personal information from its models.
• Whether OpenAI established appropriate retention and disposal procedures for the personal information that it collects, uses, and discloses.
• Whether OpenAI met its accountability requirements in respect of the personal information under its control.
• Whether the personal or domestic purposes exemption applied to OpenAI's commercial activities.
• Whether the publicly available information exception applied to OpenAI's collection of personal information from the Internet.
• Whether the journalistic, historical, or genealogical material exception under Quebec's Private Sector Act applied to OpenAI's model training data.
• Whether section 9.1 of Quebec's Private Sector Act (privacy by default) applied to ChatGPT's privacy settings.

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) investigated the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) following the loss of an unencrypted USB storage device containing sensitive personal information of 1,741 individuals. The investigation focused on whether the RCMP contravened section 8 of the Privacy Act regarding disclosure, the appropriateness of its breach response, and the sufficiency of its safeguards for USB devices. The OPC found that the RCMP contravened section 8 due to unauthorized disclosure, as the device was lost, unencrypted, and its contents were copied and offered for sale. While the RCMP's notification to affected individuals and mitigation steps were generally appropriate after discovery, the initial reporting of the loss was significantly delayed. Furthermore, the RCMP failed to implement adequate safeguards, as its own policies for procurement, inventory, and encryption of USB devices were not followed, and security awareness training was insufficient. Despite the RCMP accepting the OPC's recommendations to strengthen safeguards, audit procedures, and awareness programs, it refused to commit to specific timelines for implementation. Consequently, the complaint was found to be well-founded and unresolved.

• Whether the RCMP disclosed personal information in contravention of section 8 of the Privacy Act
• Whether the RCMP's response to the privacy breach was appropriate in the circumstances
• Whether the RCMP's measures to protect personal information contained on USB storage devices were sufficient
• Whether RCMP personnel failed to report the loss of the USB storage device to authorities in a timely manner
• Whether the RCMP's policies and procedures for procurement, inventory, and encryption of USB devices were followed and enforced
• Whether the RCMP's security and privacy awareness training for members was effective and sufficient
• Whether the RCMP's policy compliance monitoring for USB device use was adequate