Under which federal law does the Privacy Commissioner regulate the handling of personal information by the federal government?

• A. Privacy Regulations
• B. Privacy Act
• C. Access to Information Act
• D. Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act

Answer: (B)

The federal government’s handling of personal information is governed by the Privacy Act, which sets out how federal institutions must collect, use, disclose, store, and protect personal data, and what rights individuals have to access and correct their information. The Privacy Commissioner of Canada enforces this Act, investigates complaints about federal agencies’ privacy practices, and can require corrective actions or issue reports when standards aren’t met. The other options don’t fit: the Access to Information Act focuses on access to government records, not on privacy protections; PIPEDA covers private-sector organizations (and certain federally regulated activities), not federal government departments; and “Privacy Regulations” isn’t the controlling statute for government privacy.