Undertaking: Hudson’s Bay Company
File No.: 9110-2023-00617
Effective date of undertaking: 10 June 2024
Monetary payment amount: $120,000
Under section 21 of An Act to promote the efficiency and adaptability of the Canadian economy by regulating certain activities that discourage reliance on electronic means of carrying out commercial activities, and to amend the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission Act, the Competition Act, the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act and the Telecommunications Act, S.C. 2010, C. 23 (CASL, or the Act)
Person entering into an undertaking
Hudson’s Bay Company
Acts and omissions covered by the undertaking and provisions at issue
Hudson’s Bay Company has voluntarily entered into an undertaking with the Vice-President, Compliance and Enforcement (VPCE) concerning alleged violations of paragraph 6(2)(c) and subsections 11(1) and 11(3) of the Act.
Following an investigation, the VPCE alleged that commercial electronic messages (CEMs) were sent or caused to be sent by Hudson’s Bay Company, between 1 January 2022 and 30 November 2023 to promote sales for Hudson’s Bay Company without including an unsubscribe mechanism which could readily be performed.
Amount owing and summary of other conditions
During the course of the investigation, the Hudson’s Bay Company has cooperated fully with the VPCE. The Hudson’s Bay Company has voluntarily undertaken measures to resolve the VPCE’s outstanding concerns regarding the Hudson’s Bay Company’s compliance with the Act and the Electronic Commerce Protection Regulations (CRTC), SOR/2012-36 (the Regulations (CRTC)), including undertaking to comply with, and ensuring that any third party authorized to send a CEM on its behalf complies with the Act and Regulations (CRTC), pursuant to section 21 of the Act.
As part of this undertaking, the Hudson’s Bay Company agreed to make a monetary payment of $120,000 to the Receiver General for Canada in accordance with subsection 28(3) of the Act.
In addition to the monetary payment, and in order to promote compliance with the Act and the Regulations (CRTC), the Hudson’s Bay Company undertakes to review and, where necessary, enhance its compliance program addressing the sending of CEMs. This compliance program has included or will include:
- training and education program for compliance with CASL;
- processes for tracking of CEM complaints, the internal escalation of complaints, and subsequent resolution of same; and,
- monitoring, auditing and reporting mechanisms, including processes for implementation of effective corrective measures for compliance failures.
A Hudson’s Bay Company senior corporate officer will approve the enhancements made to the Compliance Program made in connection with the Undertaking, and will provide the requisite resources to implement, monitor and enforce the Compliance Program.
In addition, within 8 months of the Effective Date, the Hudson’s Bay Company will confirm in writing, to the VPCE that it has implemented the enhancements to its Compliance Program.
Finally, the Hudson’s Bay Company undertakes to review its Compliance Program on an annual basis and, if requested by the VPCE within 2 years of the Effective Date, to provide a written report of its annual review of the Compliance Program and its implementation.
This undertaking fully and completely resolves all outstanding issues between the Commission and the Hudson’s Bay Company with respect to Hudson’s Bay Company’s alleged non-compliance with the Act in relation to the VPCE’s investigation into the sending of CEMs for the period up to and including the effective date of this undertaking.
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