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Privacy - it's the word on a lot of people's minds lately. As we continue to forge ahead in a data-driven world, the LiveAlumni team is conscious of our responsibility to make sure privacy remains a priority. It's something we take very seriously.
FIPPA
Having worked with a number of Canadian institutions over the years, we wanted to take a moment to make some important clarifications for anyone who has questions about alumni data and how it co-exists with FIPPA - a.k.a. the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act that applies in Canada.
At its core, FIPPA has two main purposes: (1) granting access to information and (2) protecting the privacy of individuals when it comes to their personal information.
To reiterate, FIPPA is concerned with making sure an individual's personal information is protected.
Personal Information vs Contact Information
The first thing to ask is, what is personal information? It seems self-explanatory but that's not necessarily the case. FIPPA specifically defines personal information as “recorded information about an identifiable individual other than contact information.”
That means personal information and contact information are two different things. The next obvious question is, what counts as contact information?
Going back to FIPPA, the definition they use is “information to enable an individual at a place of business to be contacted and includes the name, position name or title, business telephone number, business address, business email or business fax number of the individual.”
And that's the key.
Employment Data is NOT Considered Personal Information
Your Alumni data is not considered to be personal information when it is contact information. And contact information includes the name, title, business telephone number, business address, business email or business fax number of an individual.
Simply put, the alumni data provided by LiveAlumni is classified as Contact Information not Personal Information and, as such, does not contravene FIPPA.
Still have questions?
We've been a partner of the Higher Ed community in Canada for almost 20 years and we're happy to share more about how institutions use our data safely. Just drop us a line and a member of our team will help you schedule a call with an expert.
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