The National Research Council of Canada (NRC) hosts and manages the Genomics Research and Development Initiative (GRDI) website on behalf of its partners.
The Government of Canada and the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) are committed to providing websites that respect the privacy of visitors. This privacy notice summarizes the privacy practices for the NRC's online activities.
All personal information collected by this institution is governed by the Privacy Act. This means that you will be informed of the purpose for which your personal information is being collected and how to exercise your right of access to that information.
Your privacy and the Internet
The nature of the Internet is such that Web servers automatically collect certain information about a visit to a website, including the visitor's Internet Protocol (IP) address. IP addresses are unique numbers assigned by Internet Service Providers (ISP) to all devices used to access the Internet. Web servers automatically log the IP addresses of visitors to their sites.
The IP address, on its own, does not identify an individual. However, in certain circumstances, such as with the co-operation of an ISP for example, it could be used to identify an individual using the site. For this reason, the Government of Canada considers the IP address to be personal information, particularly when combined with other data automatically collected when visitor requests a Web page such as the page or pages visited, date and time of the visit.
Unless otherwise noted, the NRC does not automatically gather any specific information from you, such as your name, telephone number or email address. The NRC would obtain this type of information only if you supply it to us, for example, by email or by filling in a contact form. In such cases, how your personal information is handled will be provided in a Personal Information Collection Statement.
Any personal information collected by the NRC is protected from disclosure in accordance with the Access to Information Act, the Privacy Act and the policies of the Government of Canada.
Communicating with the Government of Canada
If you choose to send the NRC an email or complete a feedback form online, your personal information is used by the NRC to respond to your inquiry. The information you provide will only be shared with another government institution if your inquiry relates to that institution. The NRC does not use the information to create individual profiles nor does it disclose the information to anyone other than to those in the federal government who need to provide you with a response. Any disclosure of your personal information is in accordance with the Privacy Act.
Emails and other electronic methods used to communicate with the Government of Canada are not secure unless it is specifically stated on a web page. Therefore, it is recommended that you do not send sensitive personal information, such as your Social Insurance Number or your date of birth, through non-secure electronic means.
Personal information from emails or completed feedback forms is collected under the authority of the National Research Council Act. Such information may be used for statistical, evaluation and reporting purposes and is included in the Public Communications personal information bank (PSU 914).
Third-party social media
The NRC's use of social media serves as an extension of its presence on the Web. Social media accounts are public and are not hosted on Government of Canada servers. Users who choose to interact with us via social media should read the terms of service and privacy policies of these third-party service providers and those of any applications you use to access them. The NRC uses LinkedIn, X, Instagram and YouTube.
Personal information that you provide to the Government of Canada via social media is collected in accordance with the Privacy Act. This information is collected to capture conversations (e.g. questions and answers, comments, "likes", retweets) between you and the NRC. It may be used to respond to inquiries or for statistical, evaluation and reporting purposes. Comments posted that violate Canadian law will be deleted and disclosed to law enforcement authorities. Comments that violate our rules of engagement will also be deleted. The personal information is included in the Outreach Activities personal information bank (PSU 938).
Improving your experience on Government of Canada websites
Digital markers (including cookies)
A digital marker is a small file placed on your computer or other device when you visit a website. The information is used to save details about the interaction between you and the website, such as your login credentials and preferences, so that you do not need to enter the information a second or third time.
Cookies and HTML5 web storage are common examples of digital markers. They are often used in the collection of web analytics, to remember your preferences (such as language or location) and to manage your browser sessions.
The NRC uses sessional and persistent digital markers on some portions of the GRDI website. During your online visit, your browser exchanges data with the NRC's web server. The digital markers used do not allow the NRC to identify individuals.
You may adjust your browser settings to reject digital markers, including cookies, if you choose to. However, doing so may affect your ability to interact with the GRDI website.
Web analytics
Web analytics is the collection, analysis and reporting of web traffic data.
The NRC conducts web analytics to improve its website. During visits to the GRDI website, the NRC tracks certain types of information treated as personal information for the purposes of the Privacy Act. Such information includes but is not limited to the:
- IP address of the device that has contacted the GRDI website
- type of browser used
- operating system used
- date and time of the visit
- pages visited and documents downloaded
The NRC does not use this personal information to profile individual visitors or to make decisions directly involving the individuals.
The NRC uses the services of Google Inc. (Google Analytics) to carry out its web analytics. Google Inc. is a third-party service provider based in the United States of America (USA). This means that the personal information collected by Google Analytics is transmitted outside of Canada and may be subject to USA laws, including the USA Patriot Act.
Learn more about how Google uses information from sites or apps that use their services, on their website.
Google Analytics uses cookies to track visits to the NRC website. If you wish, you may opt out of having your visit to the website tracked by:
- changing your browser settings to refuse cookies, disabling JavaScript within your browser
- downloading and installing the Google Analytics Optout Browser Add-on
Your access to the content on the GRDI website will not be affected if you reject the use of cookies.
Behavioural analytics
Behavioural analytics is the collection and analysis of user data across a digital platform to understand how and why users engage with the website or mobile application.
The NRC uses behaviour analytics (engagement metrics) to complement its web analytics (traffic metrics) for visits to the GRDI website. Although the data captured is anonymous, the NRC processes it as personal information for the purposes of the Privacy Act. Such information includes but is not limited to:
- visitor intentions in engaging with the platform
- web content that is most interesting to users
- web content that is ignored by users
- reasons for visitors abandoning web sessions
The NRC does not use this personal information to profile individual visitors or to make decisions directly involving the individuals.
The NRC uses the services of Microsoft Corporation (Microsoft Clarity) to carry out behavioural analytics alongside analytics by Google. Microsoft Corporation is a global cloud service provider (Microsoft Azure) qualified for Government of Canada secure cloud services. Microsoft's privacy practices are outlines in their Privacy Statement.
All personal information collected using Microsoft Clarity is stored in the Microsoft Azure cloud computing service. Microsoft stores visitor session recordings (replays) for 30 days but may store some visual representations (heatmaps) for up to 13 months.
Microsoft Clarity uses cookies to save details of user interactions with the GRDI website, including clicks, scrolls and cursor movements. These details can be identifying to the individual; however, user input information is hidden by default and not collected. This includes users' email addresses so the data is considered to be anonymous.
To deactivate Microsoft's use of cookies when visiting the GRDI website, you must install the Microsoft "Protect My Choices" extension for your browser and opt out of Clarity telemetry. Be aware that the deactivation of cookies may affect user navigation on the website.
Protecting the security of Government of Canada websites
The NRC employs software programs to monitor network traffic to identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise cause damage. This software receives and records the IP address of the computer that has contacted our website, the date and time of the visit, and the pages visited. We make no attempt to link these addresses with the identity of individuals visiting our site unless an attempt to damage the site has been detected.
This information is collected pursuant to section 161 of the Financial Administration Act. The information may be shared with appropriate law enforcement authorities if suspected criminal activities are detected. Such information may be used for network security related statistical purposes, audit, evaluation, research, planning and reporting, and is included in the Security Incidents and Privacy Breaches personal information bank (PSU 939).
Inquiring about these practices
For any questions, comments, concerns or complaints you may have regarding the administration of the Privacy Act and privacy policies for the GRDI's web presence, contact our Access to Information and Privacy Coordinator by email at ATIP.AIPRP@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca, by telephone at 613-993-3464 or by letter mail to:
Access to Information and Privacy office
National Research Council of Canada
Building M-55
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0R6
If you are not satisfied with the NRC's response to your privacy concern, you may contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner by telephone at 1-800-282-1376.