Tax information is highly personal and by law must be kept confidential.

Tax information is highly personal and by law must be kept confidential.
Photo Credit: Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press/file photo

Tax service fails to stop employees from snooping

In spite of spending at least $10.5 on the problem, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) still has not been able to stop some employees from looking into the private tax files of individuals and businesses. The agency is obliged by law to protect private information.

CBC News has discovered nine “significant cases” in which tax workers improperly accessed information such as income, deductions, benefits, payments and employment.

Breaches called a chronic problem

As the public broadcaster reports, employee snooping is a long-term, chronic problem at the tax service. The privacy commissioner flagged cases in 2009 and 2013. The commissioner noted that the tax department assured him that it had made important improvements since then.

Regardless of these latest cases, the CRA says the total for 2016 is less than it was last year. It manages one of the biggest databases of confidential information in Canada. In terms of breaches, it is the fourth worst offender of about 240 federal institutions that are subject to the Privacy Act. Worse are Veterans Affairs Canada, Immigration, and Corrections Canada which manages penitentiaries.

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