Charlie Angus has asked the office of federal privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien to investigate the apparent privacy violations.FRED CHARTRAND/The Canadian Press
A New Democrat MP says the Canada Revenue Agency twice mailed batches of private information – including names and social insurance numbers – to the wrong people in his riding.
Charlie Angus has asked the office of federal privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien to investigate the apparent privacy violations.
In a letter to the commissioner's office, Angus says the revenue agency mailed a package April 6 to several constituents in Kirkland Lake, Ont., containing the names, SINs, addresses and phone numbers of five people.
Five days later, the same constituents were mailed a second package with similar personal information about 11 people.
Angus, who has often criticized the federal agency over privacy lapses, calls the latest incidents completely unacceptable.
The revenue agency had no immediate comment.
In his latest annual report, Therrien urged federal agencies to put more rigorous safeguards in place to protect sensitive personal information.
The commissioner underscored a record-high number of federal government data breaches disclosed to his office.
Federal institutions reported 256 breaches in 2014-2015, up from 228 the year before. It marked the first time institutions were required to report significant data breaches to the commissioner.
As in previous years, the leading cause of breaches was accidental disclosure, a risk Therrien said can often be managed by following proper procedures.