Credit Unions in Canada have a long history of respecting the privacy of their customers. As a co-operative financial institution, we are committed to developing policies, procedures and service offerings that address privacy concerns.
We continue to protect your privacy and your right to control the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information. We have procedures in place that guide our employees and directors in maintaining confidentiality. What has been our ongoing business practice has become our documented commitment to you.
Debden Credit Union Board of Directors has adopted the Credit Union Code for the Protection of Personal information, established related Policies and Procedures and appointed a Privacy Officer. Our employees understand the importance of the policies and procedures and follow them carefully.
Your Personal Information
What is Personal Information?
Personal information is information about an identifiable individual. This includes, for example, an individual’s race, ethnic origin, colour, age, marital status, religion, education, medical information, criminal record, employment history, financial records, address, telephone number, e-mail address, Social Insurance Number, fingerprints, blood type, and tissue or biological sample.
Why do we collect it?
We hold personal information about members to help us meet and maintain the highest standards of financial service. This information can include your name, address, age, income, use of accounts and credit history.
We obtain this information from you directly, and from the product and service arrangements you have made with or through us. Information is also obtained with your permission from credit bureaus, other financial institutions and from the references you provide us.
Your personal information is collected for one or more of the following purposes:
* To understand your needs and eligibility for products and services;
* To open, maintain and administer your accounts and provide financial services that meet your needs;
* To obtain credit reports and evaluate your credit rating and credit worthiness;
* To administer and manage security and risk in relation to your accounts and the financial services provided to you;
* To comply with legal and regulatory requirements;
* To assist in dispute resolution;
* To offer and provide you with other products and services of the Credit Union and of its affiliates and service suppliers
The law requires us to ask for your Social Insurance Number (SIN) when you open an interest bearing account. We also ask for your SIN to identify you with credit bureaus and other financial institutions for credit matching purposes. Using the SIN is the best way to ensure the credit information actually refers to you. Giving us your SIN is not a condition on service.
Who do we share your personal information with?
We use trusted and reputable suppliers to provide cheque and statement printing, data processing, research and payment clearing services. We provide them with only that information which is necessary to perform the required services. They are not allowed to use this information for any other purpose than what we contract them for. Our suppliers and their employees are required to protect your information in a manner that is consistent with our Privacy Code.
Your information is sometimes shared within the Co-operative Financial Services Group ™ of companies so we can offer you a full range of financial products and services. These affiliates include: Credit Union Members Insurance Society (CUMIS), Credential Group, Co-operative Trust Company of Canada, The Co-operators Insurance, Credit Union Payment Services (CUPS), CUETS and Celero Solutions. Any product or service offering that is derived from this sharing of information comes directly from us and not from our affiliates.
On our website, we collect only personal information that is required to improve the services we offer, to improve our site content and, with your permission, to contact you with information about our services. We will not share any personal information obtained on this web site with any other organization without your express knowledge and consent.
You can visit all public areas of our site without providing any personal information. Our site collects only non-personal information based on a visitor’s Internet Protocol (IP) address (this is not personally identifiable). Information collected includes the date and time of visit, the type of internet browser used to access the site, the referring address (the link a visitor uses to access the site). This data is used to create statistics on site usage and improve online services.
If you send us an e-mail, any information provided by you will be used only for the purposes of responding to your inquiry or acting on your request. We will not use your name or e-mail address for any other purposes without additional consent.
Links to other websites
Our website contains links to other web sites that provide general information or are part of, affiliated with, or have a business relationship, with Debden Credit Union. When you leave our site to visit one of these other sites, the only information transferring to the new site is the fact that you came from Debden Credit Union’s web site (the referring address). Transmission of this referring address allows other sites to monitor their own web traffic, but does not disclose any personal information about you.
Challenging Compliance
If you have any concerns about how your personal information is handled or distributed, please contact us. Our Privacy Officer will be pleased to discuss your concerns with you.
For inquiries or complaints, please provide the following in a dated and signed letter:
* the nature of the inquiry or complaint (please be as specific as possible);
* include your name, address, and a telephone number where you can be reached during the daytime.
If, for any reason, you feel your concerns were not appropriately addressed, you may then take the matter to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner in Ottawa.