Accessing Your Federal Files... Privacy Act
~ Privacy Act ~
The Privacy Act gives Canadian citizens and people present in Canada the right to have access to information that is held about them by the federal government. Most information is available when you ask
~ How to apply ~
1 - Look up the appropriate federal Institution that has the files you want to see (for instance, Correctional Services Canada): http://www.infosource.gc.ca/fed/fed01_e.asp
2 - Look up the Privacy Coordinator of that institution: http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/gos-sog/atip-aiprp/apps/coords/index_e.asp
3 - Obtain a Personal Information Request Form : www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/tbsf-fsct_e.html
Fill out the form and send it to the Privacy Coordinator of the appropriate department or agency. For instance, you can ask the CSC Coordinator for "all records in all information banks held within Correctional Services Canada systems". There is no charge to apply for information under the Privacy Act. There is a 30 day time limit for them to respond.
To change the information
If you believe the information that a federal institution has on file about you is untrue or misleading, you can ask to have it corrected. Even if the department or agency does not agree to change this information, it must make a note that you have asked for the change and attach it to the file. (Check website for more info...)
We have just applied for copies of all Darren's prison files from Ottawa, in order to dispute some incorrect information. I tried the telephone # listed on the site for the CSC Coordinator, and they called me back right away with generous detailed assistance in how to fill out the form most effectively... !
The Privacy Act gives Canadian citizens and people present in Canada the right to have access to information that is held about them by the federal government. Most information is available when you ask
~ How to apply ~
1 - Look up the appropriate federal Institution that has the files you want to see (for instance, Correctional Services Canada): http://www.infosource.gc.ca/fed/fed01_e.asp
2 - Look up the Privacy Coordinator of that institution: http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/gos-sog/atip-aiprp/apps/coords/index_e.asp
3 - Obtain a Personal Information Request Form : www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/tbsf-fsct_e.html
Fill out the form and send it to the Privacy Coordinator of the appropriate department or agency. For instance, you can ask the CSC Coordinator for "all records in all information banks held within Correctional Services Canada systems". There is no charge to apply for information under the Privacy Act. There is a 30 day time limit for them to respond.
To change the information
If you believe the information that a federal institution has on file about you is untrue or misleading, you can ask to have it corrected. Even if the department or agency does not agree to change this information, it must make a note that you have asked for the change and attach it to the file. (Check website for more info...)
We have just applied for copies of all Darren's prison files from Ottawa, in order to dispute some incorrect information. I tried the telephone # listed on the site for the CSC Coordinator, and they called me back right away with generous detailed assistance in how to fill out the form most effectively... !
posted by ~Free Darren Koehn~ at 5:57 PM
1 COMMENTS:
Oh my... the worms are out of the can and all over the table...
Proper training and ethical guidance is critical to the effective and efficient administration of our justice system... our safety is in their hands - only the most noble of professional conduct is acceptable.
It is amazing and disturbing how much power a peice of paper can hold over someone's life - and how difficult it can be to rectify the damage that can stem from careless or 'inadvertently' incorrect document creation.
For instance, there are comments that refer to 'positive drug test results', when no drug test was ever actually administered; and a 'psych assessment' was compiled without actually interviewing or assessing anyone. This is highly unsatisfactory, and inappropriate.
Fortunately, there is a standardized form and process for requesting corrections to these files - we'll see to what extent any remedy is available...?
Paper is not god... neither inputting it into a 'network',nor printing it off later, will make inaccuracies become true. Worse, it only befuddles the process and casts doubt upon the credibility of those assessments. The mandate of the correctional system relies upon UP TO DATE and ACCURATE INFORMATION regarding their cases, but the system relies upon people to create that information - and people are unavoidably fallible.
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