PHSA uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc. (Google), to analyze site usage, what visitors do on the Site, which browser they use, etc. This information is obtained from Internet Information Server (IIS) log files and allows us to understand how the Site is being used so that we can improve the user experience. 

Google Analytics uses first-party cookies to track visitor interactions. The information generated by the cookie about your use of this website (including your IP address) will be transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States. Google will use this information for the purpose of evaluating your use of this website, compiling reports on website activity for the website operators and providing other services relating to website activity and internet usage. Google may also transfer this information to third parties where required by law or where such third parties process the information on Google's behalf.

PHSA uses IP masking within Google Analytics to anonymize personal information collected by Google. IP masking is a customization which removes the last octet of the visitor's IP address prior to its use and storage by Google.

Website visitors who do not want to be tracked by Google Analytics can download the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on. The add-on communicates with the Google Analytics JavaScript (ga.js) to say that information about the website visit should not be sent to Google Analytics. The Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on does not prevent information from being sent to the website itself or to other web analytics services.

For more information visit the Google Analytics Overview​ page.

Cookies

Cookies are small amounts of information stored by your web browser software on your computer. Cookies are used to track browsing history on a website.  This allows the user to interact with a website in an effective way and improves the usability of the site.

CervixCheck uses temporary cookies (“session cookies”), which means that the information collected is deleted as soon as you leave the website. If you have signed up for an account on CervixCheck, you will be required to login every time.

Information Collected Directly from You

We collect only the minimum amount of information required to provide services on the Site. Personal information will only be used for the specific purpose for which it was collected or for consistent purposes.  This information will not be used for other purposes or made available to others, except as listed in this Privacy Policy.  

You should also be aware that information provided by you becomes a record of the organization and is subject to the access and privacy protection requirements set out in the BC Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. This information may be further collected, used and disclosed in accordance with that Act or as otherwise required by law. Under this legislation you are also entitled to access and correct any of your personal information that is within our custody and control. You may make such requests by contacting the privacy representative listed below.

The following information is collected / displayed for each of the services identified: 

• Create an Account: As required by current clinical and laboratory practice standards, CervixCheck clients must provide a first and last name, date of birth, gender, personal health number as well as a valid address, email address and password, in order to use the service.  Your name, date of birth, personal health number, and gender will become part of your medical record through the physician or clinic you named when you registered for CervixCheck. Although it is not mandatory, we also recommend that you provide a phone number so that we can contact you with your test results if further follow-up is indicated, or if there was a problem with your sample at the lab.  We also require the full mailing address of where you would like the screening kit to be mailed. The name of the clinic or physician who referred you to CervixCheck is also required because your test results will be copied to this physician who will offer follow-up counselling and care if needed. Your ethnicity is optional and will be used for evaluation purposes only.  The information you provide on your CervixCheck account will be used by the CervixCheck  team to confirm your eligibility to participate in the study. You will be notified by email about your eligibility for CervixCheck.
• Lab Form: So your sample can be identified at the lab, each kit will contain a lab form. This will be filled out based on your CervixCheck account information. The personal information that will show on the lab form includes: your date of birth, your name, your personal health number and the physician you named on your CervixCheck account.
• Test Results and Test History: Once your test results are available, you will receive an email from CervixCheck, asking you to log into your CervixCheck account to view your results.  If your results are normal (no HPV is found), you will be able to see them in your account.  If there was a problem with your sample at the lab and it was unable to be tested, you will also be provided with information in your account about recollecting the sample. If HPV was found, you will see a message asking you to contact the physician you named on your CervixCheck account to arrange for further follow-up.  Test results will be shown on your account for one month (30 days), and then will be deleted.
• Contact Us form: If you have questions, comments or complaints about CervixCheck, you can send them anonymously using the form on the Contact Us page.  If you want to receive a response to your question or comment, you will need to provide your email address.  Your email address will be kept confidential. 

Evaluation

• User Surveys: From time to time, CervixCheck team members will conduct surveys with users of the CervixCheck service.  These surveys are for evaluation purposes only, to help us understand how we may improve the Site and the service that it provides. If you indicated in your CervixCheck account that you are interested in hearing about evaluation activities, you may be contacted (by email) by CervixCheck and invited to participate in a survey. If you respond to a survey, the information that you provide will only be used for analysis and reporting, and no information about you will be disclosed.  It will not be linked to you and cannot be used to identify you.  Surveys will be hosted by the Checkbox survey tool; all surveys will be hosted on Canadian servers and all survey data collected will be stored in Canada.
• Interviews: From time to time, interviews will be conducted with users of the CervixCheck service.  These interviews are for evaluation purposes only, to help us understand how we may improve the Site and the service that it provides. If you indicated in your CervixCheck account that you are interested in hearing about evaluation activities, you may be contacted (by email) by team members and invited to participate in an interview. Interviews are optional – indicating that you are interested in hearing about evaluation activities does not obligate you to participate in any interviews.
• Analysis: Personal information collected through CervixCheck will be linked to data in the databases described below under Information Retention and Disclosure, and then de-identified.  The de-identification will delete client name, date of birth, CervixCheck client code, clinical database identifier number and any laboratory database identifier numbers. This de-identified data will then be used to conduct analyses for purposes of evaluating the CervixCheck service.​

Information Retention and Disclosure

Clinical Databases

When you screen for cervical cancer using CervixCheck, you are considered to be a CervixCheck participant, and any information captured will be kept in secure databases and secure servers that are maintained by PHSA. Your personal information (name, date of birth, gender, email address, mailing address, phone number, personal health number, physician’s /clinic name, address, ethnicity) and your test result will be entered into the CervixCheck database for the purposes of tracking kits sent out, kits returned or lost in the mail, and ensuring you are followed accordingly after your screening result has been received.

Other Databases

When you test through CervixCheck, the Provincial Public Health Laboratory at the BC Centre for Disease Control (“BCCDC”) will perform all tests.  As a result, a small amount of your personal information (date of birth, gender, personal health number, test type and result), will be saved in the Provincial Laboratory database.  This is a secure database stored on secure servers that are maintained by PHSA.  Laboratory staff will have access to this database for purposes of processing tests and looking up test results.  Information stored in the Provincial Laboratory database will be retained indefinitely. This is standard of care in the province.

How Else May We Use or Disclose Your Personal Information?

Information that you provide becomes a record subject to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and may be used and disclosed in accordance with that Act.

If we receive a complaint or identify an issue that needs to be investigated (such as a breach of the Terms of Use), we may use the information you provided to investigate the issue and/or resolve the complaint, if the information you provided is related to the issue or complaint. 

From time to time, BC Cancer engages employees, representatives, agents or contractors to perform additional work on the Site, such as maintenance or an upgrade to the Site. Access to information about our users is never granted unless it is required to do the work, and in those cases, only the minimal amount of information is made available.  Any service providers or individuals who provide such work on the Site are required to provide written privacy protection and confidentiality undertakings, and owe legal obligations to maintain the privacy of all personal information. 

We may disclose or share the information you provide if it is required for law enforcement purpose, if it is subject to a Court order, or if the disclosure is otherwise required by law.​

Email

The Internet is not a fully secured method for communicating. Most emails are inherently insecure because they are not encrypted and are subject to interception or incorrect routing. Emails sent from CervixCheck are not encrypted. This means that if you choose to  send a message using the Contact Us page or another email address published on CervixCheck, the information provided may be intercepted and read by a third party. 

To protect your privacy, we do not include information about your test results in any emails sent from CervixCheck.. 

BC Cancer is not responsible for any damages suffered by individuals as a result of the email transmission of information that is sent to or from BC Cancer.  BC Cancer is not responsible for any errors or changes made to information that is transmitted by email.

Links

CervixCheck contains links to other websites. BC Cancer is not responsible for the privacy practices of these websites. Please review the privacy policies for these sites and make sure that you agree with their policies before proceeding.

How We Protect Your Personal Information

PHSA is obligated to protect your personal information by making reasonable security arrangements against such risks as unauthorized access, collection, use, disclosure or disposal. Security measures have been integrated into the design, implementation and day-to-day operating practices as part of PHSA’s continuing commitment to the protection of personal information it holds. 

BC Cancer takes the following measures to protect your personal information: 

• All the information provided and collected by the Site is stored on secure servers that are located in Canada and maintained by the Provincial Health Services Authority.
• BC Cancer employees, representatives, agents and contractors must comply with Provincial Health Services Authority and BC Cancer privacy and confidentiality requirements. 
• We use many methods (encryption, firewalls, restricted access to data, etc.) to protect your information against unauthorized access, collection, use, disclosure or disposal.
• We limit the number of PHSA  employees and CervixCheck study team who can access the information you provide on our site.  Only those employees with a need to know, have access to this information.
• Any information used for statistical, reporting, site evaluation and site improvement purposes is not linked with any information that could be used to identify you.
• Your name, CervixCheck client code, your date of birth and your personal health number will appear on your printed CervixCheck lab form. The lab form will be inside the discreet screening kit that is mailed to your home, which will only display your name and address on the outside package. The screening kit will be mailed through Canada Post and will be subject to the same privacy, confidentiality, and legislation as standard mail.
• We will never sell or rent your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.  We do not disclose, give or transfer any personal information about our website visitors, except as identified in this Privacy Policy and the Terms of Use.
• We will never sell or provide your email address to other companies, entities or individuals.

We collect only the minimum amount of information required on the Site to ensure that our services are as confidential and private as possible.  However, the Internet is not completely secure, as third parties may unlawfully intercept or access communications. While we are committed to protecting your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

Accessing and Updating Your Personal Information

You can update your CervixCheck account information at any time.  To update your account information, you must log into your CervixCheck account and then click on the My Account link in the top right corner of the website. This will bring you to the Edit Account page.  If you update your email address, you will need to verify your new email address by clicking on the link in the email that will be sent to you by CervixCheck. 

You can delete your CervixCheck account at any time.  To delete your account, you must log into your CervixCheck account, click on the My Account link in the top right corner of the website, and then click on the Delete Account link on the left side of the page.  You will be asked to indicate why you are deleting your account.

Changes to Our Privacy Policy

We will periodically review our privacy policy and update it as necessary.  Any changes to the privacy policy will be summarized here, so please check this section for ongoing updates.

Tips For Protecting Your Privacy

• Your email address and password are required to access your CervixCheck account.  Do not share your password with anyone.
• Clear your browser history and cache after each use of the Site or use your browser’s anonymous browsing mode.​
• Use an email account with a name that is not linked to your real name or other information which could identify you.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about the collection or use of your information, or the content of this policy, please send an email to cervixcheck@bccancer.bc.ca or contact:

CervixCheck Management Team

1-888-300-3088 ext 5635​