Electronic Documents and Electronic Information Regulations

Electronic Documents and Electronic Information Regulations His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Employment and Social Development, pursuant to sections 70.1a, 71b, 72c and 73d of the Department of Employment and Social Development Acte, makes the annexed Electronic Documents and Electronic Information Regulations. S.C. 2013, c. 40, s. 211 S.C. 2013, c. 40, s. 212 S.C. 2013, c. 40, s. 213 S.C. 2013, c. 40, s. 214 S.C. 2005, c. 34; S.C. 2013, c. 40, s. 205. Definitions The following definitions apply in these Regulations. conversion means the process of changing a document or information from one medium to another or from one format to another and includes migration. (conversion) electronic means what is created, recorded, transmitted or stored in digital or any other intangible form by an electronic, digital, magnetic, optical, biometric or other technological means, or a combination of any of those means that has similar capabilities for creation, recording, transmission or storage. (électronique) electronic signature means a signature that consists of one or more letters, characters, numbers or other symbols in digital form that is incorporated in, attached to or associated with an electronic document or electronic information; a secure electronic signature, which has the same meaning as in subsection 31(1) of the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act; or a signature that results from the application of any technology or process that is determined by the Minister or the Commission as able to provide the same level of security as a secure electronic signature. (signature électronique) migration means the process of transferring any electronic document or electronic information from one software or hardware environment or storage medium to another software or hardware environment or storage medium with minimal or no alteration of structure and no alteration in content and context. (migration) recipient means the person or entity to which any electronic document or electronic information is sent by the Minister or the Commission. (destinataire) Interpretation For the purposes of these Regulations, a reference to the Minister includes the Minister of Labour in respect of any program, legislation, policy or activity the administration or enforcement of which is the responsibility of the Minister of Labour. Presumption — sent by Minister or Commission An electronic document or electronic information sent by the Minister or the Commission is deemed to be sent on the date and at the hour when the document or the information enters an electronic system outside the control of the Minister or the Commission if the Minister or the Commission and the recipient use different electronic systems; or becomes capable of being retrieved and processed by the recipient if the Minister or the Commission and the recipient use the same electronic system. Presumption — received by recipient Subject to subsection (2), an electronic document or electronic information is deemed to be received, if the recipient has designated or uses an electronic system for the purpose of receiving an electronic document or electronic information of the type sent, on the date and at the hour when the document or the information enters that electronic system and becomes capable of being retrieved and processed. Presumption not applicable An electronic document or electronic information is deemed to be capable of being retrieved and processed by the recipient unless the recipient notifies the Minister or the Commission, within a reasonable period of time, that the document or the information could not be retrieved or processed. Presumption — received by Minister or Commission An electronic document or electronic information is deemed to be received by the Minister or the Commission on the date and at the hour indicated by the Minister’s or the Commission’s electronic system designated for that purpose. If the electronic document or the electronic information is not capable of being retrieved or processed by the Minister or the Commission, it may be deemed not to be received by the Minister or the Commission. Multiple documents sent in same transmission Electronic documents or electronic information sent to the Minister or the Commission in the same transmission is deemed to be received at the same time, on the date and at the hour referred to in subsection 4(1). Proof Proof of the date and the hour when an electronic document or electronic information is sent or received may be established by any of the following documents or information, providing that the document or the information indicates the date and the hour when it was sent or received: a transmission slip; an acknowledgment of receipt; any metadata that relate to the electronic document or the electronic information; any other equivalent electronic document or electronic information. Additional requirements respecting electronic signatures In addition to the requirements set out in subsection 72(4) of the Department of Employment and Social Development Act, every electronic signature must reliably link the identity of the signatory with the electronic signature for the purposes for which the signature is required; and indicate the signatory’s intention with respect to the electronic document or the electronic information. Standard of reliability of electronic signatures The standard of reliability required with respect to any electronic signature must be established taking into account the following factors, including the purpose for which the electronic signature is required; the use of a suitable method by the Minister or the Commission to identify the signatory and to link his or her identity to the electronic document or the electronic information in respect of which the signature is required; and the ability of the Minister or the Commission to verify whether any alteration has been made to the electronic signature and the electronic document or the electronic information after the time of signing, and the link between the electronic signature and the electronic document or the electronic information. Conversion Any document or information, including its related metadata, may be converted. Legal value Regardless of the technology used, the conversion must be completed in a way that does not compromise the legal value of the document or information and its related metadata. Conversion documentation In order to show that the resulting electronic document or electronic information and its related metadata have the same content as the source document or information and its related metadata and that its integrity has not been compromised, the Minister or the Commission must record the details of the conversion, including a reference to the original format of the source document or information, the steps taken during the conversion and the guarantees the steps purport to offer according to the specifications provided with the conversion product, if those details relate to the integrity of the source document or information and its related metadata and the integrity of the resulting electronic document or electronic information and its related metadata, details on the quality control associated with the conversion if those details relate to the integrity of the resulting electronic document or electronic information and its related metadata, and details pertaining to any previous conversion; and retain throughout the required retention period for the document or the information the conversion record, which must be attached, directly or by reference, to the resulting electronic document or electronic information or to the storage medium. Rules of evidence If the source document or information is destroyed, the rules of evidence must not be relied on, to contest the admissibility of a document or information that has been converted and recorded in accordance with this section on the sole ground that the document or information is not in its original format. Retention of electronic format of document or information A document or information that is created, sent or received by the Minister or the Commission and that must be retained may be retained in an electronic format if when the document or information is created, sent or received, in the case of a document or information in a non-electronic format, it is retained in a format that does not alter its contents, or in the case of a document or information in an electronic format, it is retained in the format in which it was created, sent or received, or in a format that accurately represents the electronic document or the electronic information that was originally created, sent or received; the contents of the electronic document or the electronic information and its related metadata are readable or perceivable so as to be usable for subsequent reference; and the format and the medium in which the electronic document or the electronic information is retained provide a reliable means of maintaining, from the time the source document or information is created, sent or received, the integrity of the electronic document or the electronic information, including the integrity of the record of retention actions and administrative activities, apart from any changes or additions made in the normal course of communication, storage or display. Date and hour retained If details are generated concerning the date and the hour when an electronic document or electronic information is sent or received by the Minister or the Commission, those details must be retained by the Minister or the Commission. Standard of reliability The standard of reliability required with respect to an electronic document or electronic information must be established in light of the purpose for which the document or the information is created, sent or received by the Minister or the Commission. Integrity maintained throughout retention period The integrity of an electronic document or electronic information must be maintained throughout the period beginning on the day on which it is created, sent or received by the Minister or the Commission and ending on the day on which the required retention period for the document or the information ends. Assessment of security measures The integrity of an electronic document or electronic information must be assessed in light of the security measures that have been applied to the electronic document or the electronic information in order to maintain its integrity throughout the period set out in subsection (1); and the electronic system in which the electronic document or the electronic information is created, sent, received or retained. Additional criteria for maintaining integrity The integrity of an electronic document or electronic information is maintained if it is possible to verify that the document or the information and its related metadata have not been altered, apart from the alterations set out in subsection 14(2), even if the document or the information has been fragmented, compressed or stored for a limited time to increase the efficiency of its transmission. Presumptions when integrity maintained An electronic document or electronic information whose integrity has been maintained may be used in the place of the source document or information; is not invalid or unenforceable solely because it is in electronic format; and has the same legal value as the source document or information regardless of the medium, format or technology used. Prohibition to alter Subject to subsection (2), a person must not alter an electronic document or electronic information, or any of its related metadata, that is created, sent or received by the Minister or the Commission. Alteration by authorized persons A person who is authorized by the Minister or the Commission may alter an electronic document or electronic information or any of its related metadata if the details of each alteration, including the date and the hour when the alteration is made and the name of the person who is making it, are recorded in an unalterable record. End of retention period — destruction When the retention period for an electronic document or electronic information ends, the document or the information may be destroyed, subject to section 12 of the Library and Archives of Canada Act, if the details of each destruction are recorded in an audit log or in a similar document that identifies the following elements, including the electronic document or the electronic information to be destroyed; the date and the hour when the electronic document or the electronic information was created, sent or received, if those details were generated and retained; the name of the person who authorized the destruction; and the date and the hour of the destruction. Registration These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.