Introduction

At Canada Post respecting the privacy and safeguarding the personal information of our customers is a commitment that is fundamental to our business and central to the trust Canadians have in our brand.

This online privacy statement explains why we collect personal information from you, how we use it and the steps we take to ensure your privacy is protected when visiting canadapost.ca.

Why we collect personal information

Canada Post collects personal information from you only with your knowledge and consent to help meet our commitment to provide excellent service and to continuously improve your experience on our website. The personal information we collect may include your name, email address, mailing or business address, phone numbers and language preference, but may include other information when needed to fulfill your request.

We collect this information to allow you to purchase or register for certain products, services and applications and complete those transactions; to enter contests; to subscribe to email newsletters; and to provide you with services or information that may be of interest to you.

The type of personal information we collect falls into 5 categories:

User ID and passwords:
Provides you with access to your profile and protected content.

Account information:
Tells us who you are, how to contact you, and shipping or billing information. Your account information also contains information you have provided to us, such as your language of choice, email formats and preferences.

Customer feedback and support:
Provides a mechanism for requesting information from Canada Post. This information also provides us with insight on how we may improve our products and services to meet your needs.

Email correspondence:
Used to respond to your inquiries of all kinds. With your permission, may also be used to communicate information about Canada Post and our products and services.

Transactions:
Shows us which products and services you have requested. We will not use, disclose or retain payment information (e.g. credit cards numbers) except as required under law.

To help prevent fraud and identity theft, some of our online services, such as smartmoves™, use a third-party service provider to validate your identity through an online authentication process. While you are required to provide personal information, this information is not collected by the third-party service provider and Canada Post does not have access to the personal information.

Collection of non-personally identifiable information

The Canada Post website automatically collects non-personally identifiable information from you when you visit our site. This includes click stream data, your Internet Protocol (IP) address and information collected through the use of cookies, as explained below. Canada Post aggregates this information about your visit with those of other visitors. You are not personally identified in any way.

• Click stream data
  This data includes general log information (click stream) such as the full Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of the pages you accessed on CanadaPost.ca. We also collect referral and aggregated "click-through" statistics such as page views, unique visitors and time spent on the website. This information helps us provide you with a continually improving and enhanced online experience, including the ease and speed of navigation to help you find the products, services and information you need.

• Internet Protocol (IP) address
  This is the address used to connect your computer to access the Internet. This information may be used to investigate unauthorized attempts to access, alter or delete data, the spreading of viruses and other illegal intrusions to the website.

This information helps us provide you with a continually improving and enhanced online experience, including ease and speed of navigation to help you find the products, services and information you need. We also use this aggregate information for research and analytical purposes to better understand how people are using our website. For example, it allows us to enhance popular web pages and to modify or discontinue those that are not needed. This information may also be used to recommend tailored content to you.

When do we disclose personal information?

Your personal information will only be used or disclosed for the specific purposes for which it is collected or as authorized by law. For example, Canada Post must maintain website security, which includes the investigation of unauthorized attempts to access, alter or delete data, the spreading of viruses and other illegal intrusions. This could result in disclosures to law enforcement agencies.

Otherwise, we will only disclose your personal information to a third party where you have previously consented to the third party’s collection of such information.

We may also use your personal information to send you information about Canada Post products or services or introduce you to our business partners that carry products that may be of interest to you. Some of our online services may share your name and address (but not your email address) to pre-screened, reputable companies so they can offer you their products.

What are your choices?

At any time you can have your name removed from our email marketing lists.

If you do NOT have a username and password at Canadapost.ca or at epost.ca, you may opt-out by contacting our Customer Support team at: service@canadapost.ca.  If you have a username and password at epost.ca or Canadapost.ca, edit your account information and preferences online.

How you can access your personal information

Please review our Info Source Chapter to see what information Canada Post has.

If you have a username and password at epost.ca or Canadapost.ca please edit your account information and preferences online.  You can access your personal information by contacting the Customer Support team at: service@canadapost.ca. To assist us in processing your request, please include the following details:

• Contact information (your name, address, email and telephone number)
• Name of the product or service where you want the update applied
• Details of the request (e.g., change of email address, unsubscribe from a newsletter, review of your personal information, etc.)

How do we protect your personal information?

Canada Post uses well-established technology to protect the security of your online personal information and your personal content.

While we are committed to maintaining the security of your information, you play an important role in helping us meet this obligation. Never reveal your username, password or authentication question to anyone.

Encryption
Encryption is a way of "scrambling" electronic information for transmission. 128-bit encryption is the strongest, most secure form of encryption that is generally available in Internet browsers on the market in North America today. That's why we require all of our customers to use a browser that supports this level of encryption.

Many areas of the Canada Post website require 128-bit encryption. Your browser may use symbols such as a key or a padlock icon to show you when you are in a secure area. For more information about the encryption capabilities of your browser, use the browser's HELP menu.

In general, if your browser's encryption level is not high enough, you will not be able to use many of the Canada Post website services.

Firewalls
A firewall is an "industrial-strength" combination of hardware and software designed to separate the Internet from our internal computer systems and databases. All Internet data flows through a series of safety checkpoints on its way to and from our internal systems so that only authorized messages and transactions enter our computing environment. These firewalls also help to prevent unauthorized access to our computer systems from outside.

The Canada Post Tools and the epost™ mailbox are web-based services. This means that all your personal content and personal information are stored on our computers and viewed by you using a web browser. Many email services work by downloading messages to your computer via the Internet when you sign in. By storing your data and messages on our servers, we keep the information securely behind our firewall. Please remember, any information that moves outside our secure website may not be secure.

Viruses
A software virus is a computer file which, when installed (either from a disk or by downloading it via the Internet), can cause damage to a computer. Some viruses are relatively harmless and display annoying messages; others can seriously damage your computer and the information on it. If you choose to download files from the Internet, you should be aware of the risk of viruses.

New viruses continue to be detected on the Internet. If you choose to download any files available through links from this website, please take reasonable and appropriate precautions to scan for computer viruses.

How we use cookies and web analysis tools

CanadaPost.ca contains links to other websites. While Canada Post takes measures to ensure that the links on our website are to reputable and well-established companies, we are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites. We encourage you to learn about the privacy practices of those websites.

Click stream data
Click stream data includes general log information (click stream) such as the full Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of the pages you accessed on the Canada Post website and the Internet Protocol (IP) address used to connect your computer to the Internet. We collect click stream data in addition to referral and aggregated "click-through" statistics such as page views, unique visitors and time spent on the website.

Cookies
A "cookie" is a piece of data that a web server creates when you visit a website. This data is typically encoded information about how and when you use a site. It is placed on your PC in the form of a small text file. Cookies cannot carry viruses or other damaging data. You can control cookies through your browser settings and other tools.

Web beacons
A web beacon, also referred to as a clear gif or page tag, consists of code on the Canada Post site that delivers a small graphic image from another website or third party server. They may not be visible as the beacon is generally a 1x1 pixel that is often designed to blend into the background of a web page.

We use beacons, often in conjunction with cookies, to monitor the effectiveness of various forms of advertising available on the Canada Post website and to understand certain actions that you took (such as a purchase), but not to know who you are. We do not use beacons to store or link to personal information. We may also share information about your browsing activities on the Canada Post website with a third party but only where you have previously consented to the third party’s collection of such information.

We may also rely on the above-described data to recommend tailored content to you.

By visiting the Canada Post website, you consent to the placement of cookies and beacons in your browser in accordance with this Privacy Statement.

Children's personal information

Canada Post does not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of majority without the consent of a parent or guardian.

Links to other sites

While Canada Post takes measures to ensure that the links on our website are to reputable and well-established companies, we are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites. We encourage you to read and become familiar with the privacy policies of those websites before you volunteer any personal information.

How to reach us

Should you have any additional questions or concerns related to the Canada Post Online Privacy Statement or our privacy practices please write to privacy@canadapost.ca or the Canada Post Privacy Office, 2701 Riverside Dr., N1140, OTTAWA ON K1A 0B1.

Business Accounts
By choosing a Canada Post Business account, you agree to provide Canada Post with your business contact information.  Business contact information means any information that is used for the purpose of communicating or facilitating communication with an individual in relation to their employment, business or profession such as the individual’s name, position name or title, work address, work telephone number, work email address, work fax number.

Business account information is not protected by the Privacy Act in the same way as Personal account information.

For more information about the protection of Business account information, please contact us at privacy@canadapost.ca or Canada Post Privacy Office, 2701 Riverside Drive, N1180, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0B1.

Canada Post Business account users cannot add a personal payment option to their Business account.

epost Privacy Notice

Introduction

At epost we respect your privacy and take our responsibility to protect your personal information seriously. We believe this commitment is fundamental to our business and central to the trust you have in us.

This Notice provides you with the highlights of what we do to ensure your privacy is protected when you use epost. For more information about how epost works, please read the epost Terms and Conditions.

If you are a Vault user please follow this link for more information about your privacy and the Vault

What Personal Information We Collect

We only collect personal information reasonably required to provide you with the epost Service and to continuously improve the Service and your experience on our web site. We collect your:

• Username,
• password,
• name,
• address,
• telephone number,
• account number(s),
• mail piece identification information,
• transaction (payment) information, and
• email address

Collection of Other Information

The epost web site automatically collects anonymous information about the way you use the site. This includes click stream data and information collected through the use of cookies.

epost aggregates this information about your visit with those of other visitors. You are not personally identified in any way.

The information collected helps us to provide you with:

• a continually improving online experience, and;
• easier navigation to the information that you need.

We also use this combined information to better understand how people are using the epost web site. For example to:

• identify popular features, and;
• improve less useful ones.

How We Use Your Personal Information

We use your personal information to help mailers send you mail, to help epost, and participating financial institutions, maintain your account and to offer you other products and services. This is a list of examples of ways we use your personal information:

• To contact you
• To provide and maintain your epost service
• To put mail in your epost box
• To stop mail when you ask us to
• To maintain the security and integrity of epost
• To help Mailers verify your identity
• To offer you other products or services from epost or organizations
• To understand how people use epost

Why We Share Your Personal Information

We share your personal information with other organizations to manage epost and meet your service expectations. Here are some examples when we will share your personal information:

• Within the Canada Post Group of Companies to manage the epost infrastructure
• Within the Canada Post Group of Companies to investigate problems or complaints
• With law enforcement agencies if necessary
• With contractors, as necessary, to provide limited services to epost

We do not sell personal information about you to anyone.

If You Activate Your Mailbox

The first step in activating your Mailbox is for epost to confirm that the physical address you provide is one Canada Post recognizes. To do that we will verify your address against the information Canada Post uses to help deliver the mail.

For you to verify your mailbox online, Equifax (a credit bureau) will require additional personal information such as your date of birth and in some cases, your Social Insurance Number (optional). This information is not collected or stored by Canada Post.

When you click "Verify My Mailbox Online", your personal information will be transmitted securely to Equifax for verification against information they already have about you.

If you verify your mailbox at a retail outlet your personal identification information will be collected and securely stored by Canada Post. This is done to protect you, epost and Canada Post against fraud and identity theft.

Why is verification necessary?

Verifying your Mailbox helps Canada Post ensure that you have the right to access the physical mailbox located at this address.

Once we determine you have the right to access the mailbox located at the physical address, you can view and open the household mail at the associated digital Mailbox.

Verification also helps to prevent fraud.

How We Keep Your Personal Information Safe

Your personal information is stored securely at Canada Post.

We only allow people with a need to know access to personal information.

We have strict security controls to protect against unauthorized access to, or use, alteration, destruction or disclosure of your information. These controls include 128-bit encryption (the real information is "scrambled" so it cannot be read) and firewalls (combination of hardware and software designed to separate the Internet from the epost computers). For example:

• when you log into your epost mailbox your password and authentication, or secret, question are encrypted
• Mail in your epost Mailbox is encrypted so you can see it but others cannot

Your Role in Protecting Your Privacy

You can protect your privacy by keeping your Username, password and authentication, or secret, question confidential.

If you receive an email containing a request for this information, you should not respond. Instead, please call our Customer Service Department at 1-877-376-1212 to let us know. We will never ask for this information in an email. If you forget your password and phone our Customer Service Department to help reset it, we may ask for your Username while assisting you.

You can help ensure the quality of the service you receive on our web site by keeping your information up-to-date. If you do not, you may not be able to use epost to its full capacity.

What are Your Choices?

You always have the choice to opt-out of receiving special offers or promotions sent by us to your epost or email address by logging into your epost mailbox and updating your "Profile". Follow the instructions on the Profile page to stop receiving special offers or promotions from epost or other companies who have a relationship with epost.

How to Reach Us

If you have any questions or concerns about epost's privacy practices or this Notice, please contact us at privacy@canadapost.ca or Canada Post Privacy Office, 2701 Riverside Drive, N1180, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0B1.

If You Activate Your Vault

The Vault is a separate service within epost, used to store digital documents.

• We use your epost information to help you register and then access the Vault
• We ask you to create authentication or secret questions and answers known only to you. We do this in case you want to re-set your Vault Password or if you contact us for help.
• We collect payment information (e.g. credit card numbers) to process payments for your epost Vault. We will use, disclose or retain payment information only as required.

About the documents you store in your Vault

We apply 256 AES bit encryption to the Documents you upload to your Vault. This means the contents of your Vault are scrambled and they can only be accessed using your unique Username and Vault Password.

Sometimes system issues or maintenance requirements may mean that our developers or other technical personnel may be able to see file names and key words you have chosen to use in connection with your Vault Documents, but not the contents of those documents. Knowing this, you may not want to use filenames or keywords that you consider to be sensitive or confidential.

As part of the Vault Service, you may share your Vault Documents with other Vault Users. Vault Documents will remain encrypted throughout this process.