Privacy Policy

The Board of Canadian Registered Safety Professionals (BCRSP) recognizes the importance of confidentiality and the responsible use of new applicant and certificant information. This policy applies to the collection and use of both new applicant and certificant Personally Identifiable Information (PII).

When you provide PII to BCRSP, we process your PII according to the Privacy Policy in effect when your data are collected. This PII includes data used to verify your identity, such as the digital photograph, signature, palm vein pattern, and audio/video recording collected during certification testing at a testing center. This Privacy Policy includes a description of current data collection, processing, use, including transmission to the United States; and information concerning BCRSP strategic partners and service providers. This Policy is available for review at bcrsp.ca/privacy.

The BCRSP Privacy Policy covers PII collected from you by BCRSP and/or its service providers through bcrsp.ca, by fax, postal mail, electronic mail or phone. It also covers the data collected at test centers. BCRSP is generally the “data controller” as defined under certain international laws.

When you submit an application for certification, you agree that:

• Your PII can be collected, processed, used, by BCRSP and its service providers, including transmission to the United States under the terms in the Privacy Policy in effect when you provide your information.
• If you are submitting an accommodation request, you also agree that the PII in that request can be collected, transmitted to the US, and evaluated by BCRSP, Pearson VUE, its service providers and external reviewers.
• BCRSP, and its service providers, must abide by local laws. They may share your PII if required by law or to prevent a law from being broken.

You are aware of your ability to access, modify, or correct certain personal data, as explained in this Privacy Policy and any more current one found at bcrsp.ca/privacy.

Collection and Use of Your Information

Applicants

To process a certification application, including examination, the BCRSP needs certain personal information from all applicants, which is clearly identified on the application form.  Other information may be needed for you to purchase BCRSP products or voluntarily participate in other BCRSP programs or services, and it will also be clearly identified. You may also provide additional or optional information to enhance the services provided to you. The categories of information we may collect include:

• Contact information, including full legal name, address, telephone, and email address, is required of all applicants.
• References and supporting documentation about applicants
• Payment information for fees to take the BCRSP exam or for related products, facilitated by Pearson VUE and, at times, other service providers, is required of all test takers and purchasers of other products.
• Data used to verify your legal identity during BCRSP registration and at test centers (including, but not limited to, a government-issued identification, a digital photograph, signature, palm vein pattern, and audio/video recording of the test session captured at the test center), are required by all test takers. 

We use some or all of the information we collect about you to:

• Register you as an applicant and/or candidate to the certification process, including registration for the BCRSP exam, reschedule or cancel test appointments, and allow you to view past and future test appointments
• Authenticate and verify your identity to maintain the integrity, quality, and security of the BCRSP exam and other products and services
• Respond to your customer service requests
• Invite you to participate in survey research
• Send your score reports to you
• Conduct research concerning the BCRSP exam
• Cooperate as required by law or in legal proceedings, and as needed to detect or prevent unlawful activity

Certificants

Once certified by the BCRSP, the BCRSP needs certain personal information on file for all certificants, which is clearly identified in the certificant profile online. Other information may be needed for you to purchase BCRSP products or voluntarily participate in other BCRSP programs or services, and it will also be clearly identified. You may also provide additional or optional information to enhance the services provided to you. The categories of information we may collect include:

• Contact information, including full legal name, address, telephone, and email address, is required of all certificants.
• Information regarding other certifications held, level of education obtained, and your areas of specialty.
• Information related to any volunteer activities undertaken with BCRSP
• Information related to the investigation of complaints and related disciplinary processes
• Information and supporting documentation related to certification maintenance requirements
• Payment information for fees to renew your BCRSP certification, or for related products or services.

In responding to general inquiries from third parties, the BCRSP may advise whether or not an individual is a CRSP in good standing.

Maintenance of Accurate Certificant Information

The BCRSP will maintain accurate and up-to-date applicant and certificant information on all internal systems, records and documents. Information accuracy and integrity are fundamental to the BCRSP’s operations. It is essential that applicants and certificants promptly communicate updates and corrections of personal information to the BCRSP. The BCRSP is committed to working with applicants and certificants to correct erroneous PPI.

Access, Modification, Data Integrity, and Retention

You may access, modify, or deactivate the majority of your PPI by contacting BCRSP Customer Service. However, some data are subject to certain rules:

• Names. You can change your name only in certain circumstances. Name changes cannot be made online; you must call or email BCRSP Customer Service and provide documentation to support the name change.
• Test scores, records related to your test experience, your digital photograph, digital signature, and other test records, such as the audiotape/video tape of the testing experience. These materials are kept on record for a specified period and cannot be modified or deactivated by examinees. The digital palm vein pattern template collected at a test center cannot be altered or destroyed, for five years from your most recent testing date.

Generally, we will retain your PPI only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which that PPI was collected and as permitted or required by law.

Key stroke statistics, exam answers, essays, and similar test records. These materials are kept 10 years and cannot be modified or deactivated by examinees.

If you have a Professional Conduct/Disciplinary violation or sanction on your record, BCRSP may keep information about you for longer periods than those listed above.

Special Note Regarding Palm Vein Pattern Collection

If you are testing at a centre where Palm Vein Pattern Collection[1] is being utilized as a security measure, subject to local law and regulation, a palm vein pattern template will be collected when you first arrive at the test center, and again each time you leave and re-enter the test room after a break. These data are stored separately from your personally identifiable information, and the data are encrypted for transmission and storage. Personnel and system access to this data is limited. A palm vein pattern and a digital photograph collected at the test center may be compared against those obtained from you at a prior testing session or those obtained from other test takers for fraud detection purposes. Other than for use by BCRSP, Pearson VUE, the test center, and for law enforcement, legal proceedings or fraud prevention, this information is not shared with or allowed to be used or seen by third parties.

Security of Your Information

BCRSP uses security safeguards to protect your PPI. The security measures are administered by appropriate BCRSP officials and incorporates administrative, technical, and physical safeguards over your data and our systems to protect your PPI from loss, unauthorized disclosure, misuse, alteration, or destruction.

The BCRSP examination application information is sent to our authorized service provider (Pearson VUE) using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption. Pearson VUE is subject to strict security requirements and confidentiality restrictions.

Data Sharing and Onward Transfer

BCRSP recognizes its responsibility to safeguard the information in our files from unauthorized or inappropriate disclosure. BCRSP examination scores and other personally identifiable examinee information will be released only at your specific request unless required by law, as necessary to detect or prevent unlawful activity, or to cooperate in a judicial or governmental proceeding.

BCRSP may provide third parties with aggregate statistics about our applicants or certificants, web traffic patterns, and related website information. This data reflects site usage patterns gathered during thousands of visits to our website each month but does not contain behavioural or identifying information about any individual applicant or certificant, unless that applicant or certificant has given us permission to share that information. We may also provide log files and other databases of user information to third parties for analysis so we may get a better understanding of traffic through our site and thus improve our content offerings. 

Certificant Marketing and Solicitation

The BCRSP will not sell or disclose to unaffiliated third parties applicant or certificant information for solicitation or other marketing purposes. Please note that by submitting PPI to us, you consent to the BCRSP’s use and disclosure of the information to suppliers of authorized BCRSP services and products. If you do not consent, you have the option of removing your name from all authorized third party distributions through the online certificant profile.

BCRSP Key Service Providers and Strategic Partners

BCRSP has a number of key service providers helping with the BCRSP Program, related products and services, and survey research. Such organizations are subject to strict terms of use and/or confidentiality requirements. These include but are not limited to:

• Pearson VUE: A key service provider for BCRSP registration, customer service, test administration at test centers worldwide
• Assessment Strategies Inc.: A key service provider for test development, test scoring services, and test related surveys.
• Acclaim: A service provider for the issuing of a digital badge.
• Fletcher Wright Associates: Provider of management services for the BCRSP.
• Information Technology vendors: IT vendors may provide IT development assistance, store information, or host our servers.

Transborder Data Flows

If you provide PPI to apply for BCRSP certification, buy other products or participate in other BCRSP services, you agree that your data can be processed and controlled in the country where it was collected, and then transmitted to the United States if required. Information stored in the United States may be subject to the United States Patriot Act. As such, it may be available to the United States government or its agencies under a lawful order made in the United States.

Law Enforcement and Fraud Prevention

If required by law or compelled by court order, warrant, subpoena or other governmental proceeding, BCRSP may provide access to PPI. BCRSP may also provide access to PPI if needed to any other regulatory agency, licensing or certification board (or an equivalent) related to your status as a certified professional in order to prevent fraud or other unlawful activity.

Changes to This Policy

From time to time, we may need to change our Privacy Policy or procedures. If we make any material changes to our Privacy Policy, including changes in our use of personal information, we will post a prominent notice on the bcrsp.ca website and other places we deem appropriate to make you aware of what information we collect, how we use it, and under what circumstances. For our current Privacy Policy, please visit bcrsp.ca/privacy.

Responding to Requests

We will attempt to acknowledge receipt of your request within 10 days. BCRSP’s Privacy Officer will provide a formal decision and reasons in writing, written in a straightforward manner, within 30 days of receipt of your request. We will advise you in writing if we cannot meet your requests within this time limit.  You may make a complaint to the Privacy Commissioner of Canada in respect of this time limit, however, you should be aware that the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act only has limited application to BCRSP.

Contact Us

If you have questions about this privacy policy or believe we have not adhered to it, please contact the BCRSP privacy officer:

Nicola Wright, CAE
Executive Director
BCRSP
info@bcrsp.ca

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Website

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THIRD PARTIES
BCRSP may provide third parties with aggregate statistics about our customers, traffic patterns, and related site information. This data reflects site usage patterns gathered during thousands of customer visits to our website each month but does not contain behavioural or identifying information about any individual certificate holder, unless that certificate holder has given us permission to share that information. We may also provide log files and other databases of user information to third parties for analysis so we may get a better understanding of traffic through our site and thus improve our content offerings. 

OBTAINING YOUR CONSENT
By using our website, you give BCRSP permission to collect information about the pages served to you as an anonymous user for the purpose of calculating aggregate site statistics. If you register at BCRSP you authorize BCRSP to use information you provide to personalize the information we deliver to you and to use your demographic information when calculating aggregate customer data. BCRSP may occasionally amend this policy. We suggest that you bookmark this page and check to see if it has changed from time to time.

TERMS OF USE
Disclaimer:
The Board of Canadian Registered Safety Professionals (BCRSP) strives to provide accurate and up-to-date material on this web site. However, BCRSP makes no guarantees as to the accuracy or timeliness of the material provided on this site. BCRSP assumes no liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions on this site. This site may contain articles and information relating to occupational health, safety and environmental issues. This information is provided for reference only. Neither BCRSP, any of its agents, nor any other party involved in creating, producing, or delivering this site is liable for any damages arising out of your access to, or use of, this site or any material from this site. BCRSP assumes no liability or responsibility for any damage to you, your computer, or your other property, due to your access to, use of, or downloading of this site or any materials provided on this site.

Links
Links on this site may take you to other websites. BCRSP has not reviewed any or all of the sites linked to this site and accepts no responsibility for any sites linked to this site. Your linking to any site from this site is at your own risk. By linking to a site or permitting a link to this site, BCRSP does not endorse the site operator or the content of the linked site.

Applicable Law
Any dispute arising out of your use of this site or material from this site shall be resolved according to the laws of Canada.

Severed Provisions and Entire Agreement
If any provision of this agreement is unenforceable, that provision shall be deemed severed from this agreement and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions.