Decisions

The complainant alleged that the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) had improperly withheld information under subsection 16(2) (facilitating the commission of an offence) of the Access to Information Act in response to an access request. The request was for the complete source code for the ArriveCAN application. The allegation falls under paragraph 30(1)(a) of the Act.

CBSA provided evidence to demonstrate that disclosure of the source code could be used by malicious actors to either hack the application, pose as the ArriveCAN application in the App Store/Google Play Store or to expose a security vulnerability which would place the personal information of individuals at risk.

CBSA also provided evidence that it considered relevant factors such as the public interest in disclosure, the sensitive nature of the information collected by the application and the purpose of the Act when exercising its discretion pursuant to subsection 16(2).

The complaint is not well founded.

The complainant alleged that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) had improperly withheld information under paragraph 16(1)(a) (investigate bodies) of the Access to Information Act in response to an access request for the investigation reports into the deaths of two individuals. The allegation falls within paragraph 30(1)(a) of the Act. 

The RCMP showed that it met all the requirements of these exemptions. Furthermore, the Information Commissioner is satisfied that the RCMP considered all relevant factors and reasonably exercised its discretion to decide not to release the information. That being said, the Commissioner continues to recommend that consideration be given to amending section 26 of the Privacy Act and section 19 of the Access to Information Act (sections relating to personal information), in order to give the head of an institution the discretion to disclose personal information about a deceased individual to a parent or close relative for compassionate reasons, as is currently possible in several provinces. 

The complaint is not well founded.