PIPEDA & What it Means for Your Document Destruction Policies
November 15, 2018
Ugh. You must keep that document for 3 years before shredding it, and you need to keep that other one for 7 years. Document and records management is no small task for most companies. But it’s crucial that every company has a document destruction policy. And PIPEDA, or the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act make it so.
What is PIPEDA?
Known as Bill C6, PIPEDA is a federal law enacted by Parliament on April 13th, 2000. According to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, PIPEDA, “applies to the collection, use or disclosure of personal information in the course of commercial activity”.
Generally speaking, PIPEDA obligates businesses to get a person’s consent to collect, use or reveal that person’s personal information. It also gives individuals the right to know and access what information an organization has about them.
Some of the provisions of PIPEDA include:
- Personal information can only be used for the purpose for which it was given
- Companies and organizations must get specific consent to use the information for purposes other than those for which the information was given
- Individuals must be assured that their information is protected by appropriate safeguards
PIPEDA & Your Document Destruction Policies
Even without the requirements of PIPEDA, your company is at risk if it doesn’t protect personal information. Customers would not buy from you, employees would not work for you, and suppliers would not sell to you.
So maintaining a full, up-to-date document destruction policy, not only keeps you in compliance with PIPEDA, it keeps you in business.
Creating and maintain a solid document destruction policy means thinking of it as more than something that outlines how long you store a document. Instead, consider it as your guideline for how long the personal information on those documents is at risk. The good news is that, once a document has reached its retention limit, and certifiably destroyed, you can breathe easier.
To learn more about PIPEDA, creating and maintaining a document destruction policy, and certifiably destroying all your documents, contact us here at Papersavers.
