______________________ BY NEIL WINDSOR, P.ENG. Executive Director and Registrar ______________________

Recently APEGGA became aware of a privacy breach involving certain member information that is considered confidential. This was viewed as a serious matter meriting careful review to determine why this could occur and what action must be taken to ensure that it could not reoccur.

An independent panel was created, comprised of a public member of Council and two professional members who are not members of Council. A thorough and impartial review of all matters surrounding the incident was carried out. The panel concluded that there was no significant harm done but did make recommendations for corrective action.

APEGGA has a strong privacy policy, in conformance with provincial privacy legislation, and clear internal policies that should have prevented such an instance from happening. Unfortunately, there was a weakness and information concerning a small number of members was released.

The panel concluded that there was no intent to misuse the information, nevertheless certain information was used in an improper manner. In response to the report, appropriate corrective action has been taken to strengthen the policies and internal procedures and preclude this from happening in the future.

Although the information concerned a small number of members, APEGGA sincerely regrets this unfortunate incident and apologizes to any members who may have had concerns over the use of this information. As is appropriate, the provincial privacy officer has been informed of the matter.

APEGGA’s Privacy Policy may be viewed on the APEGGA website at www.apegga.org/policy/overview.htm.