Canadian Privacy Decisions

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada investigated complaints following a privacy breach by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), where personal information of approximately 1,000 individuals was inadvertently sent to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). The investigation confirmed that a CRA employee switched cover letters for two different packages, resulting in a consultation package being sent to a CBC journalist instead of the intended recipient. Despite the CRA's efforts to retrieve the information and implement corrective measures, the information was not returned by the CBC, leading to a published article by the CBC.

• Unauthorized disclosure of personal information
• Adequacy of CRA's internal procedures and employee training
• Compliance with section 8 of the Privacy Act regarding disclosure