At Girl Guides of Canada – Guides du Canada (GGC) we are committed to protecting the privacy of our members, donors, and non-member participants, and support a general policy of openness about how we collect, use and disclose personal information.
The purpose of this Privacy Statement is to inform you about GGC’s practices relating to the collection, use and disclosure of personal information which may be collected by us through your filling out GGC forms or otherwise providing information to participate in GGC events, or through our website. By filling out the forms, either yourself or on behalf of your child/ward, by participating in our events, or by using our website, you consent to the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information (as defined below) and, if applicable, the personal information of your child/ward in accordance with the following terms and conditions.
This Privacy Statement also explains how you can contact us if you have a question about, want to make a change to or delete any personal information that GGC may be holding about you or, if applicable, your child/ward. We strongly recommend that you take the time to read this Privacy Statement and retain it for future reference.
Personal Information
For the purpose of this Privacy Statement, “personal information” means information about an identifiable individual, that could be used to identify, contact, or locate an individual. This includes but is not limited to name, birthdate, health card number, IP address, phone number, email address, or mailing address.
What Personal Information We Collect
GGC collects personal information to screen applicants for membership and non-member participation, and in order to help effectively and safely provide activities and events for GGC members. This information includes but is not limited to contact information (such as name, address, e-mail address and telephone numbers), age, skills and educational background, employment history, volunteer experience, proof of identity (such as a signature), police reference checks, references and information on medical conditions, allergies and medications.
GGC also collects financial information (such as credit card information and banking information on personal cheques) from members and donors
When entering GGC contests, entrants under the age of 14 are required to indicate guardian consent prior to the submission of personal information. On entry forms, we may ask for the entrants’ first name, last name, email address and phone number. This personal information is collected, used and disclosed only for the purposes of awarding contest prizes.
How We Use Your Personal Information
Personal information that is collected by GGC or its representative is only used for Guiding purposes. GGC uses your personal information to facilitate communication between members within each unit, and to communicate with you through mailings, newsletters, announcements of upcoming events and opportunities, and in connection with fundraising requests. GGC uses your information about skills, employment and volunteer history to best employ your talents in the service of our organization. GGC uses health information to help ensure the proper response to any health situation that may arise during our activities or events. GGC uses financial information only to complete a membership or donation transaction
GGC maintains a database of member information (called “iMIS”) which is used to maintain current contact information, emergency contact information, membership status and a history of your participation in GGC. Only GGC staff and members with a legitimate need to access this information have access to the database. Each member is assigned a unique iMIS number, and you may access your records through our member portal (called Member Zone) to check for accuracy. Please see the section below on correcting and updating your information for further details on how to correct any errors in your iMIS file.
GGC does not use automated processing for decision making, except for girl membership and subsidy decisions. If a decision is made by automated process using your personal data, you may request the information used, and the criteria. An appeal can be requested by contacting the National Membership department at membership@girlguides.ca
Any questions about how GGC uses your personal information should be directed to privacy@girlguides.ca.
When We Disclose Your Personal Information
GGC does not disclose personal information to individuals, organizations or corporations outside of GGC at any time or for any reason, except with the consent of the individual member or as required or authorized by law.
GGC may share personal information with third parties engaged to assist us in providing services to you or to carry out one or more of the purposes described above. The third-party service providers consist of but are not limited to the functions of property bookings, activity and event registration, merchandising and police record checks. These service providers are prohibited from using such personal information for any purpose other than to provide this assistance and are required to protect personal information disclosed by GGC and to comply with the general privacy principles described in this Privacy Statement. In certain cases, personal information may be transferred outside of Canada. In those cases, the information will be subject to the laws and regulations of the jurisdiction where the information is transferred.
GGC reserves the right to disclose personal information to a third party if a law, regulation, search warrant, subpoena or court order legally requires or authorizes us to do so.
Knowledge and Consent
GGC collects personal information about you or, if applicable, your child/ward only when you voluntarily provide it. Typically, we will seek consent for the use or disclosure of such personal information at the time of collection. In certain circumstances, consent may be sought after the information has been collected but before use (for example, when we want to use information for in a purpose not previously identified).
The form of consent that we seek, including whether it is express or implied, will largely depend on the sensitivity of the personal information and the reasonable expectations of the individual in the circumstances. When you fill out a GGC form, for instance, you imply that we may use that information for the purpose for which you filled out the form.
GGC keeps a record of members’ history with the organization, including participation in GGC activities and events. By joining GGC, you acknowledge that we may keep this record and consent to such retention, so that if your membership becomes inactive and you later decide to rejoin, GGC will still have your previous membership history on file. We will not use this information for any other purpose except with your consent.
You may withdraw consent at any time, subject to legal restrictions (such as to protect GGC from liability) and reasonable notice. If you wish to withdraw your consent, please email privacy@girlguides.ca. We will inform you of the implications of withdrawing consent as appropriate.
GGC does not, as a condition of participation, require you to consent to the collection, use or disclosure of information beyond that required to fulfill the explicitly specified and legitimate purposes for which the information is being provided.
Collection, Use or Disclosure of the Personal Information of Girl Members
GGC may periodically contact girl members directly to ask for their ideas, opinions, and feedback and to provide information about upcoming events. If you do not wish for GGC to contact your child/ward, you may withhold permission or retract it at any time. If you wish to retract permission, please contact privacy@girlguides.ca.
GGC will not disclose personal information of girl members without the express consent of a parent/guardian, except where required by law.
Collection and Use of Demographic Data
Through previous research and consultations, we have determined that the composition of our membership and staff does not reflect the rich diversity of the Canadian population. In keeping with our commitment to diversity and inclusivity, we deem demographic data collection necessary to effectively identify and remove systemic barriers to full participation of all girls and women in GGC.
The information you provide in GGC surveys is of utmost importance as it helps GGC to better understand the demographics currently comprising GGC’s membership, to assess our diversity and inclusion efforts, and to make the necessary changes to ensure more inclusive cultures, programs, and practices that will be meaningful and relevant to all girls.
The information you provide will be kept confidential and only used in aggregate form in accordance with the highest standard of human rights and privacy legislation. The data will be maintained in a secure information system.
Your participation in GGC surveys is voluntary.
How We Protect Your Personal Information
GGC makes all reasonable efforts to ensure that personal information collected from you is protected against loss and unauthorized access. This protection applies in relation to information stored in both electronic and hard copy form. Access to your personal information is restricted to selected members and employees. In addition, GGC employs generally accepted information security techniques, such as firewalls, access control procedures and cryptography, to protect personal information against loss and unauthorized access.
Retention of Your Personal Information
GGC retains your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected. In some cases, it is necessary for GGC to retain personal information indefinitely, in order to protect GGC from liability in the event of a dispute or for archival and organizational purposes. Unless you explicitly withdraw your consent, we will retain your name and membership history beyond the end of your active membership, so that we may archive your participation in the organization and retain this information for you should you decide to return in the future. Any other personal information will be redacted, anonymized or destroyed upon your membership becoming inactive for a period of three years, or earlier if the information is no longer relevant to the purpose for which it was collected. For girl members, some personal information will be redacted or anonymized upon membership becoming inactive for a period of three years past age of majority in their home province.
GGC is a national organization, with headquarters located in Toronto. While data is communicated and stored in the province of Ontario, it may also be stored nationally and internationally when applicable.
Website
If you visit the GGC website, and do not actively provide any personal information, GGC still stores certain information automatically, via the placement of a text file called a “cookie” in the browser directory of your computer’s hard drive. The cookie cannot be read by any website other than the one that set up the cookies. If you choose to modify your browser to disable cookies, some pages of this website may not function properly.
GGC will only collect and store the following information about your visit to our website:
- The Internet domain from which you accessed the GGC site;
- The type of browser and operating system you are using;
- The date and time of your visit;
- The pages within the GGC site that you visit; and
- If you linked to another website from the GGC site, the address of that site.
GGC uses this information to count the number of visitors to the different GGC web pages, to make the site more useful to our members and visitors. You should be aware that operators of linked websites may also collect your personal information (including information generated through the use of cookies) when you link to their websites. GGC is not responsible for how such third parties collect, use or disclose your personal information, so it is important to familiarize yourself with their privacy policies before providing them with your personal information.
Changes to this Privacy Statement
GGC reserves the right to modify this Privacy Statement at any time. The Privacy Statement posted via the GGC website shall be deemed to be the Privacy Statement in effect. A current copy of the Privacy Statement can be obtained at any time by contacting privacy@girlguides.ca or your provincial/territorial or national offices.
Correcting or Updating Your Information
You can help us maintain the accuracy of your personal information, or the personal information of your child/ward, by notifying us of any changes to this information. You may contact GGC to request access to or correction or update of your personal information via your provincial/territorial or national GGC office. Members accessing their own records in Member Zone can make these changes within the “your iMIS Profile” section.
Frequently Asked Questions
Our FAQs provide additional information about the collection of personal information and members' responsibilities for the safe and careful collection and storage of this information.
Complaints
If you think that personal information has been improperly collected, used or disclosed by GGC or a representative, or if you have reason to believe that GGC may have failed to adhere to this Privacy Statement, please contact privacy@girlguides.ca to discuss the incident. The most common privacy breach is related to the unauthorized disclosure of personal information – be it lost, stolen, or inadvertently disclosed through human error. Please include all facts of the suspected violation, including names, dates, locations, and a detailed description of the incident as well as any supporting documentation.
The Privacy Officer will oversee the review of the incident and respond within thirty days. The response to a privacy breach will depend on the circumstances and type of information affected.
Contacting Us
If you no longer wish to receive email from GGC, please send notification by email to privacy@girlguides.ca including the email address you do not want to be contacted at.
If you have any questions about GGC’s Privacy Statement, please contact GGC’s Privacy Officer at: privacy@girlguides.ca
100-180 Duncan Mill Rd.
North York, ON M3B 1Z6
Telephone 1.833.433.0996
Canadian Anti-Spam Law (CASL)