Guide to FOIP-Chapter 2

Office of the Saskatchewan Information and Privacy Commissioner. Guide to FOIP, Chapter 2, Administration of FOIP. Updated 7 March 2023. 53 Privacy and Access Offences Section 68 of FOIP provides that it is an offence: • To knowingly collect, use or disclose personal information in contravention of FOIP or The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Regulations [s. 68(1) of FOIP]. • To willfully destroy any record that is governed by FOIP with the intent to evade a request for access to the record [s. 68(3)(d) of FOIP]. • For an employee of either a government institution or an information management service provider to knowingly disclose or direct another person to disclose personal information in contravention of FOIP or The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Regulations [s. 68(4) of FOIP]. • For an employee of a government institution to willfully access, use or direct another person to access or use personal information that is not reasonably required to carry out a purpose authorized under FOIP. In other words, if it is not needed to do your job it is likely snooping, and snooping is an offence [s. 68(6) of FOIP]. • For an employee of an information management service provider to willfully access, use or direct another person to access or use personal information in contravention of subsection 24.2(1) of FOIP. In other words, if it is not needed to do the job of an information service provider as outlined at subsection 24.2(1) of FOIP, it is likely snooping, and snooping is an offence [s. 68(8) of FOIP]. The penalties for doing any of the above is a fine of up to $50,000, imprisonment of up to one year, or both.98 Subsections 68(5), 68(7) and 68(9) of FOIP provide that an employee who contravenes subsections 68(4), 68(6) and 68(8) of FOIP is liable on summary conviction to the above fine or imprisonment even where the government institution or information service provider has not been prosecuted or convicted under FOIP. In other words, employees of government institutions or information service providers can be prosecuted independently from their employers. 98 The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, S.S. 1990-91, c. F-22.01, s. 68(1), (3), (9).

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