Standard on Security Screening
Ensures that security screening in the Government of Canada is effective, efficient, rigorous, consistent and fair, and enables greater transferability of security screening between departments and agencies.
Date modified: 2014-10-20
Glossary
- administrative cancellation (annulation pour des raisons administratives)
- A decision recorded on an individual's security screening file that the security screening process has been discontinued and that is not recorded as a denial or revocation.
- associations (associations)
- To unite with a connection or cooperative link with another or others in act, enterprise, business, partnership or collegially, in mind, imagination or person, as a partner, ally, or friend, and including but not limited to circumstances of accompaniment, attendance or presence at an event or with an entity.
- authoritative source (source autorisée)
- A collection or registry of records maintained by an authority that meets established criteria. (Source: Standard on Identity and Credential Assurance)
- compartmented information (information cloisonnée)
- Information derived from sensitive sources and methods. Access to compartmented information is limited to Top Secret cleared Canadian citizens who are authorized to access the information after receiving a formal indoctrination. Compartments are implemented by controlling access to information using frameworks know as control systems. Control systems define who may access the information, and under what conditions.
- criminal conviction (condamnation au criminel)
- The outcome of a criminal prosecution which concludes that an individual is guilty of an offence and has:
- been convicted in Canada of an offence under an Act of Parliament punishable by way of an indictable offence or summary conviction, or
- been convicted of an offence outside Canada that, if committed in Canada, would constitute an offence punishable by way of an indictable offence or summary conviction under an Act of Parliament.
- criminal organization (organisation criminelle)
- A group, however organized, that:
- Is composed of three or more persons in or outside of Canada; and
- Has, as one of its main purposes or main activities, the facilitation or commission of one or more serious offences that, if committed, would likely result in the direct or indirect receipt of a material benefit, including a financial benefit, by the group or by any of the persons who constitute the group.
(Source: Criminal Code, section 467.1) - criminal record (casier judiciaire)
- A record of criminal convictions and their dispositions, discharges, and outstanding entries including:
- Criminal convictions contained in the Identification Databank of the Canadian Police Information Centre, RCMP National Repository of Criminal Records and/or police of jurisdiction databases; or
- Foreign criminal convictions for offences which would have been an offence punishable by way of an indictable offence or summary conviction under Canadian law had it been committed in Canadian jurisdiction; or
- Outstanding entries, such as charges, warrants, judicial orders, peace bonds, probation and prohibition orders; or
- Absolute and conditional discharges as set out in section 730 of the Criminal Code.
- enhanced screening ( (filtrage approfondi)
A type of security screening activity conducted when duties and access to information, assets or facilities are related to or directly support security and intelligence functions.
- evidence of identity (preuve de l'identité)
A record from an authoritative source indicating an individual's identity. There are two categories of evidence of identity: foundational and supporting.
- foundational evidence of identity (preuve de l'identité essentielle)
- Evidence of identity that establishes core identity information such as given name(s), surname, date of birth, sex and place of birth. Examples include records of birth, immigration or citizenship from an authority with the necessary jurisdiction.
- integrity (intégrité)
- The state of being accurate, complete, authentic and intact.
- law enforcement authority (organisme chargé de l'exécution de la loi)
- A body sanctioned by a municipal, provincial or national government to enforce laws and apprehend those who break them.
- law enforcement inquiry (enquête sur l'exécution de la loi)
- An examination of law enforcement authority records, databases or databanks to determine whether an individual:
- Has a criminal record; and/or
- Is associated with a criminal organization or known criminals; and/or
- Is a dangerous offender; and/or
- Is known, suspected of, or has engaged in criminality.
- loyalty to Canada (loyauté envers le Canada)
- A determination that an individual has not engaged, is not engaged, nor is likely to engage in activities that constitute a "threat to the security of Canada" as defined in section 2 of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act.
- managers at all levels (gestionnaires à tous les niveaux)
- Includes supervisors, managers and executives.
- need to know (besoin de savoir)
- A criterion used by the custodian(s) of sensitive information, assets or facilities to establish, prior to disclosure or providing access, that the intended recipient must have access to perform his or her official duties.
- other individuals (autres particuliers)
- Persons to whom government may need to provide access to sensitive information or assets, or access to facilities, through a formal arrangement that may include, but is not be limited to the following:
- assignments (e.g., Interchange Canada assignments, detachment personnel);
- contracts;
- locally engaged staff at Canadian missions abroad;
- domestic or international information-sharing agreements;
- participation in special events (e.g., census);
- volunteers (e.g., victim services / community policing volunteers);
- federal/provincial/territorial (FPT) agreements ; or
- critical infrastructure partnerships.
- polygraph examination (test polygraphique)
- An examination that uses questioning techniques and technology to record physiological responses which might indicate deception by an individual.
- protected asset or information (renseignement ou bien protégé)
- An asset or information that may qualify for an exemption or exclusion under the Access to Information Act or the Privacy Act because its disclosure would reasonably be expected to compromise the non-national interest.
- protected or restricted area or facility (secteur ou installation à accès protégé ou restreint)
- An area or facility that is surrounded by a barrier or zoned as Operations, Security and High Security, where access is limited to individuals who have a valid security screening status or clearance.
- qualified (qualifié)
- Officially recognized as being trained, experienced and/or holding appropriate professional designation to perform a particular job.
- reasonable assurance (assurance raisonnable)
- A high degree of confidence that internal controls achieve intended objectives recognizing that external factors and inherent risk can impact and thereby limit the ability to provide absolute assurance of an individual's reliability or loyalty.
- reliability status (cote de fiabilité)
- The minimum standard of security screening for positions requiring unsupervised access to Government of Canada protected information, assets, facilities or information technology systems. Security screening for reliability status appraises an individual's honesty and whether he or she can be trusted to protect the employer's interests. Security screening for reliability status can include enhanced inquiries, verifications and assessments when duties involve or directly support security and intelligence functions. Reliability status may also be referred to herein as a security status.
- residual risk (risque résiduel)
- Level of risk remaining after security measures have been applied
- security and intelligence functions (activités de sécurité et de renseignement de sécurité)
- Functions that contribute to the safety of Canadians and the national security of Canada. These activities include efforts to detect, investigate and collect intelligence regarding threats posed by criminal organizations, malicious cyber actors, hostile intelligence organizations, foreign interference in Canadian affairs, or individuals engaged in criminality, espionage, terrorism or proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and taking appropriate measures to prevent and protect against these threats while enforcing Canadian statues and supporting Canada's national interests.
- security assessment (évaluation de sécurité)
- An appraisal of an individual's loyalty to Canada and, so far as it relates thereto, the reliability of an individual. (Source: Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act, section 2)
- security clearance (autorisation de sécurité)
- The standard of security screening for all positions requiring access to Government of Canada classified information, assets, facilities or information technology systems. Security screening for a security clearance appraises an individual's loyalty to Canada and their reliability as it relates to that loyalty. Security screening for security clearance can include enhanced inquiries, verifications and assessments when duties involve or directly support security and intelligence functions.
- security screening (filtrage de sécurité)
- The process of conducting a security screening activity and evaluating an individual's reliability and/or loyalty to Canada in support of a decision to grant, grant with a waiver, deny, or revoke a reliability status, security clearance or site access clearance.
- security waiver (dispense de sécurité)
- A condition attached to the granting of a security status or clearance that details restrictions related to an individual's eligibility to access to sensitive information or assets, and facilities. A security waiver may be used when, despite concerns encountered in the security screening of an individual, a risk management decision is made to engage the individual on the basis that the duties cannot be performed by another.
- securityprogram (programme de sécurité)
- A group of security-related resource inputs and activities that are managed to address a specific need or needs and to achieve intended results.
- sensitive information (information délicate)
- Information categorized as protected (Protected A, Protected B or Protected C), classified (Confidential, Secret, Top Secret) or compartmented (Signals Intelligence, Talent Keyhole).
- site access clearance (autorisation d'accès aux sites)
- The standard of security screening for other individuals who are not employees, when duties do not require access to information but do require access to protected or restricted areas or facilities. Site access clearance is conducted when loyalty to Canada is the primary concern.
- site access status (cote d'accès aux sites)
- The standard of security screening conducted for other individuals who are not employees, when duties do not require access to information but do require access to protected or restricted areas or facilities. Site access status is conducted when reliability is the primary concern.
- special access (accès spécial)
- Compartmented information which is derived from sensitive sources, such as SIGINT or Talent Keyhole, in accordance with international bilateral agreements, which requires, as a prerequisite, Canadian citizenship and a Top Secret security clearance, and which is authorized through a formal indoctrination process.
- sponsor (parrain)
- One who conducts and/or arranges for the security screening of individuals with whom there is a need to share sensitive information which the Government of Canada is taking measures to protect, and who vouches for the security status or clearance of those individuals to other departments or agencies which may have a need to share sensitive information with the same individuals.
- standard screening (filtrage ordinaire)
- A type of security screening activity conducted when duties and access to information, assets or facilities are not related to and do not directly support security and intelligence functions. Standard screening applies to most duties or positions and other individuals with whom there is a need to share sensitive information.
- supporting evidence of identity (preuve à l'appui de l'identité)
- Evidence of identity that corroborates the foundational evidence of identity and assists in linking the identity information to an individual. It may also provide additional information such as a photo, signature or address. Examples include social insurance records; records of entitlement to travel, drive or obtain health insurance; and records of marriage, death or name change originating from a jurisdictional authority. (Source:Standard on Identity and Credential Assurance)
- threats to the security of Canada (menaces envers la sécurité du Canada)
- espionage or sabotage that is against Canada or is detrimental to the interests of Canada or activities directed toward or in support of such espionage or sabotage,
- foreign influenced activities within or relating to Canada that are detrimental to the interests of Canada and are clandestine or deceptive or involve a threat to any person,
- activities within or relating to Canada directed toward or in support of the threat or use of acts of serious violence against persons or property for the purpose of achieving a political, religious or ideological objective within Canada or a foreign state, and
- activities directed toward undermining by covert unlawful acts, or directed toward or intended ultimately to lead to the destruction or overthrow by violence of, the constitutionally established system of government in Canada,
(Source: Canadian Security Intelligence Act)- vulnerable person (personne vulnérable)
- A person who, because of his or her age, a disability or other circumstances, whether temporary or permanent,
- is in a position of dependency on others; or
- is otherwise at a greater risk than the general population of being harmed by a person in a position of trust or authority towards them.
- vulnerable sector check (vérification des antécédents en vue d'un travail auprès de personnes vulnérables)
- Pursuant to the Criminal Records Act, an examination of law enforcement authority records, including record suspensions for sex offences, databases, or databanks to assist departments and agencies in assessing the suitability of individuals in positions of trust or authority over vulnerable persons including children, the elderly and persons with disabilities. A vulnerable sector check involves the query of the following:
- The Royal Canadian Mounted Police's National Repository of Criminal Records, including pardoned criminal files associated with sexually based criminal offences;
- Canadian Police Information Centre Intelligence and investigative databanks; and
- Police services records management systems where the applicant has resided.
Note: Information in relation to record suspensions obtained as a result of conducting a vulnerable sector check can only be used to screen individuals for positions of trust or authority over vulnerable persons.