Summary of the Privacy Impact Assessment for Oyster Licence Retirement Grant Program
Title
Oyster Licence Retirement Grant Program
Description
The Oyster Licence Retirement Grant Program is a new Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) initiative designed to provide financial assistance to eligible active commercial oyster licence and/or permit holders in Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia who voluntarily retire their oyster harvesting licences or permits. This program is administered in accordance with the section 4 of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada Act, R.S. 1985, c. F-15 and section 5 of the Atlantic Fisheries Restructuring Act, R.S. 1985, c. A-14.
The program was developed in response to the significant impacts of Multinucleate Sphere X (MSX) and Dermo diseases on wild oyster stocks in Atlantic Canada. The initiative aims to facilitate an orderly transition for affected harvesters while reducing harvesting pressure on severely depleted wild oyster populations.
To administer the program, DFO collects and uses personal information required to assess applicant’s eligibility, verify active participation in the oyster fishery, confirm compliance with program requirements, administer grant payments, and support overall program delivery.
Why a privacy impact assessment was completed
As per the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) Directive on Privacy Practices, a Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) was conducted to assess the privacy implications associated with the handling of personal information required to administer the Oyster Licence Retirement Grant Program. The PIA was completed to ensure that appropriate measures are in place to protect personal information collected and processed throughout the administration of the program and to identify, assess, mitigate, and eliminate, where possible, any potential privacy risks for the individuals concerned.
Additional information
As part of the PIA, four mitigation measures were identified to address potential privacy risks.
Risk 1
Personal information relating to a licence holder may be collected indirectly through an authorized representative, creating a risk that inaccurate information may be submitted on behalf of the licence holder.
Mitigation
Strengthening procedures to verify and maintain the accuracy of personal information submitted through authorized representatives, including mechanisms that allow licence holders to validate information provided on their behalf and request corrections where required (completed).
Risk 2
An individual may act on behalf of a licence holder without proper authorization, resulting in the submission of personal information without valid consent or authority.
Mitigation
Ensuring that individuals acting on behalf of licence holders provide appropriate attestations confirming their authority to submit personal information and supporting documentation (completed).
Risk 3
Authorized users may have broader access to personal information than is required to perform their duties.
Mitigation
Implementing program-specific role-based access controls to ensure that personnel only have access to personal information required to perform their duties in accordance with the principles of least privilege and need-to-know (by the end of the 2026 – 2027 fiscal year).
Risk 4
The absence of a documented quality assurance and audit plan may limit the ability to systematically assess the effectiveness of privacy and security safeguards.
Mitigation
Developing a documented quality assurance and audit approach to support ongoing monitoring of privacy, security, and access controls, and to facilitate the timely identification and remediation of any deficiencies (by the end of the 2026 – 2027 fiscal year).
Related personal information banks
For more information about this privacy impact assessment
Access to Information and Privacy Secretariat
613-993-3115
DFO.ATIPPolicyandPrivacy-PolitiquesAIPRPetViePrivee.MPO@dfo-mpo.gc.ca
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