Website Privacy Policy

MPSG is committed to protecting the confidentiality of Personal information. In order to bring to Your attention the privacy practices implemented in connection with its Site, MPSG has developed this privacy policy, which summarizes: (i) the types of Personal information collected and the situations that may lead to its collection; (ii) the ways in which it is used and protected; (iii) the situations in which it may be shared; and (iv) how it is stored and destroyed. This policy also describes Your rights, as well as the security measures in place and the procedure applicable in the event of a breach of confidentiality. The links below will take You to the various sections of our policy:

Definitions and interpretation
Collection and use of Personal information
Sharing of collected Personal information
Security measures in place
Retention of Personal information
Third-party websites
Rights and communication with MPSG
Changes to this privacy policy

This privacy policy should be reviewed carefully as it governs the use of the Site.

MPSG wishes to emphasize that You are not required to provide Personal information to access and use the Site unless You choose to contact MPSG and provide information to MPSG; Personal information may, however, be processed as described below.

1. DEFINITIONS AND INTERPRETATION

Capitalized terms used in this policy have the following meanings:

Authorized subcontractor refers to any person who assists MPSG in the development or provision of the Site and who requires access to certain data (including Personal information) in order to do so.
Cookies are small text files that are placed on the hard drive of devices, if applicable, when a person accesses the Site, which may either be temporary or disappear when these devices are closed, or be permanent and remain even after these devices are closed.
MPSG means McPeak-Sirois Group for Clinical Research in Breast Cancer.
Other forms of technology means any other form of software/system that enables the prolonged storage of data.
Personal information means information concerning a natural person that allows, directly or indirectly, that person to be identified, unless otherwise provided by law.
Site means MPSG website available at https://mcpeaksirois.org/en/, the Metastatic Breast Cancer Registry site available at https://registrecancersein.org/en/, or any other URL, as may be applicable from time to time.
User or You refers to any person accessing or using the Site.

Unless the context otherwise requires, grammatical variations of any terms defined herein have similar meanings, and singular includes plural, and masculine includes feminine, and vice versa.

2. COLLECTION AND USE OF PERSONAL INFORMATION

Personal information collected or provided in connection with the Site is obtained, used, disclosed, stored, destroyed and otherwise processed as set out in this policy. MPSG may also process such information in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, including the Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector, in order to fulfill its responsibilities.

2.1 Information obtained directly from Users

No collection of Personal information is required to allow You to access and use the Site. You may, however, choose to provide Personal Information to MPSG. In accordance with the law, MPSG considers that if You provide information to MPSG, You have consented to its collection for the purposes for which it was provided (or as otherwise required or permitted by law).

The following information can be provided:

Comments, questions and requests for information: You may choose to provide certain Personal information (e.g., names and email, and opinions/observations) if You contact MPSG to obtain information or to make comments or requests. MPSG will use this Personal information to respond to Your communication.
Content: No Personal information is required to access the Site. However, Cookies may collect certain information as described in section 3.2 below.
Employment: If You wish to submit Your application, then MPSG will collect and process Your contact details and any other information You have submitted (e.g., Your qualifications and documents submitted, including a C.V.) in order to analyze the file and contact You.
Patient referrals: For heathcare professionals who use MPSG’s patient referral tool, MPSG may collect and process Your name as well as Your contact details (email and phone number) in order to process Your referral request and follow up directly with You.
Surveys and registrations: If You complete a survey or register for a conference or other event organized by MPSG, MPSG may collect Your comments, Your name, as well as Your contact details (email and phone number). This information is collected to process Your registration and/or to follow up with You following the event or Your participation in a survey, depending on the answers provided. In the event that You register for an activity involving a registration fee, MPSG does not collect any financial information about You.

2.2 Information obtained from third parties or through technology

Certain types of Personal information may be obtained from third parties or through technology in the following situations:

Cookies and Other forms of technology. When You access or use the Site, certain information (e.g., clicks/interactions) may be collected using the following Cookies:

Process/utility Cookies	These Cookies enable the Site to function properly, Web pages to maintain their integrity and Users to interact with Site functionalities.
Personalization Cookies	These Cookies are used to personalize and enhance Your experience by presenting customized features or content.
Analysis Cookies	These Cookies collect data (such as date, time, frequency of use, pages viewed, features used and questions submitted in the search bar) to enable MPSG to see how You interact with the Site. The statistics generated are used to improve the Site and design features to enhance Your experience (e.g., more information on a subject).

Other forms of technology can be used for the same reasons. IP addresses are not collected and MPSG does not otherwise attempt to identify You. Cookies and Other forms of technology that are not required (e.g., analysis Cookies) can be blocked without impacting the Site. However, blocking required Cookies and Other forms of technology (e.g., process/utility Cookies) may affect the Site. If You encounter any problems, You can contact MPSG.

Social media. MPSG uses social media platforms that allow You to follow it and add it to Your contact list. MPSG has access to the Web pages and/or profiles according to the chosen settings, as described in the privacy policies and terms of use applicable to these platforms. MPSG also receives notification of and access to links and/or other publications in which it is identified. You should review the privacy settings applicable to its accounts/pages to validate the information to which its contacts have access and limit such access, if necessary.

2.3 Use of Personal information

MPSG uses Personal information only for the purposes described in section 2.1 or section 2.2, as applicable, or as permitted or required by law or with Your consent.

3. SHARING OF COLLECTED PERSONAL INFORMATION

MPGS does not sell or otherwise market Personal information. In addition, Personal information is not shared or disclosed to third parties or used for purposes other than those: (i) described in this policy; (ii) required or permitted by law; or (iii) authorized by the individuals concerned

Site: Personal information may be shared with Authorized subcontractors who assist MPSG in operating the Site. Disclosure will be limited to Authorized subcontractors who have a need to know and who are bound by confidentiality undertakings, and will take place in compliance with applicable laws.
Other: Personal information may be disclosed by MPSG acting reasonably, if it believes that disclosure is: (i) necessary to comply with applicable laws, including a legal procedure or a governmental request; (ii) necessary to protect its rights; or (iii) otherwise permitted or required by law.

4. SECURITY MEASURES IN PLACE

4.1 Security

MPSG has implemented various measures to ensure the protection of Personal information, which are reasonable in light of, among other things, the sensitivity of the information, the purpose for which it is to be used, its quantity, distribution and medium. These measures include the following:

Limited collection and processing: MPSG does not require Personal information to be provided, and only processes Personal information provided for the purposes for which it was provided (subject to applicable law), and MPSG does not collect or process Personal information other than as described in this policy or as permitted or required by law.
Limited access: Subject to applicable laws, access to any Personal information is granted only to the employees and representatives of MPSG (and, where applicable, Authorized subcontractors) with a need to know, following the implementation of appropriate measures, and in accordance with applicable laws.
Authorized subcontractor: Authorized subcontractors are required to ensure the protection of Personal information to which they have access in the performance of their duties, and to comply with applicable laws.
Privacy impact assessment: Privacy impact assessments are performed when required by law.
Security in transit: If Personal information is communicated, then an HTTPS or reCAPTCHA protocol is used to transfer the information, and the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology protects Personal information through server authentication and data encryption. Activation of this technology can be confirmed by looking at: (i) the browser bar, which will then display, depending on the browser, a padlock to the left of the website address (URL); and (ii) the URL or browser address bar, in which the first characters should change from “http” to “https”.
Secure data center: The Site is hosted on a secure and private platform provided by a reputable IT provider.
Confidentiality incident : If MPSG has reason to believe that a confidentiality incident involving Personal information has occurred, then MPSG will take reasonable steps to reduce the risk of injury and avoid further incidents. If the incident presents a risk of serious injury, MPSG will notify the Commission d’accès à l’information and the persons concerned. MPSG may also notify any person likely to reduce this risk (by communicating only the necessary Personal information). Finally, MPSG will comply with all other legal requirements.

4.2 Limitations

Notwithstanding the foregoing, all Users must bear in mind that ALL TECHNOLOGY – AS WELL AS ANY OTHER SERVICE/PLATFORM OR DELIVERY METHOD – IS NEVER INFAILABLE OR FULLY PROTECTED AGAINST IMPREVISIBLE EVENTS, CYBERATTACKS (AND OTHER ILLEGAL ACTS) OR FAILURES, AND USERS MUST BE AWARE THAT THERE IS A RISK ASSOCIATED WITH ANY TRANSMISSION (INCLUDING ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION) OF DATA. THEREFORE, MPSG CANNOT GUARANTEE THAT SUCH DATA (INCLUDING PERSONAL INFORMATION) WILL NEVER BE INTERCEPTED OR SUBJECT TO OTHER INCIDENTS. FURTHERMORE, EVENTS AFFECTING DEVICES AND SYSTEMS (INCLUDING THOSE LEADING TO THEIR ACCESS AND CONTROL) MAY OCCUR, AND UNWANTED COMMUNICATIONS AND INVITATIONS MAY BE RECEIVED. IF USERS RECEIVE ANY COMMUNICATION THAT APPEARS TO BE FROM MPSG REQUESTING FINANCIAL OR OTHER PERSONAL INFORMATION, THEN SUCH USERS SHOULD REFRAIN FROM RESPONDING TO SUCH COMMUNICATION. MPSG WILL NEVER REQUEST FINANCIAL OR OTHER INFORMATION IN THIS MANNER. USERS WHO HAVE PROVIDED PERSONAL INFORMATION IN RESPONSE TO A SUSPICIOUS COMMUNICATION, POP-UP OR WEBSITE CLAIMING TO BE AFFILIATED WITH MPSG, OR WHO HAVE EXPERIENCED ANY OF THE EVENTS DESCRIBED ABOVE, SHOULD CONTACT MPSG IMMEDIATELY.

It is also the responsibility of each individual to take reasonable steps to protect their Personal Information

5. RETENTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION

Subject to applicable laws, MPSG will retain and store Personal information for uses and disclosures consistent with this privacy policy for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes described herein. To this end, MPSG may retain and store Personal information after the specific purposes for which it was collected have been fulfilled if reasonably necessary: (i) to comply with applicable laws or to prevent violations; (ii) to resolve disputes; and (iii) to ensure the implementation of this privacy policy. When such information is no longer required, it will be deleted or retained on aggregated and anonymized basis.

6. THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES

The Site may contain hyperlinks to third-party websites. MPSG is not the owner of these sites, is not responsible for them and does not control the content or functionality of these third-party websites. Accordingly, MPSG assumes no responsibility for such sites. You should consult the privacy policies of these other websites before using them.

7. RIGHTS AND COMMUNICATION WITH MPSG

7.1 Users’ rights

Subject to applicable laws, MPSG will confirm the existence of any Personal information it holds about You following receipt of Your request to this effect, and will provide You with access to such Personal information (e.g., by allowing You to take a copy). You may make requests for correction or exercise any other rights, if applicable, by contacting MPSG and complying with applicable legal requirements. Before processing a request, MPSG may ask for information to confirm Your identity. In some cases, laws may permit or require MPSG to refuse a request. Similarly, information will be inaccessible once it has been destroyed in accordance with MPSG’s practices (see section 5). If MPSG is unable to comply with a request, it will inform You of the reasons why, subject to any applicable legal restrictions.

7.2 Communications with MPSG

You can contact MPSG for:

Any questions, comments and requests: Contact details for the Privacy Officer are available here. Requests will be processed promptly and within the applicable legal time limits. You may refuse or withdraw Your consent to the collection or other processing of Personal information, or request its deletion at any time (subject to reasonable notice) and subject to any legal requirements.
Any complaint: Contact details for the Privacy Officer are available here. You must indicate Your name, the type of complaint and any details deemed relevant to the complaint. The Privacy Officer will then investigate the complaint. If necessary, the Privacy Officer will contact You to obtain any further information required. Following the investigation, You will be notified of the results of the investigation. You may also contact the Commission d’accès à l’information; in this case, the complaint must be made in writing in accordance with the applicable process (see the information available here).
Unsubscribe from emails: This can be done at any time by using the contact details available here, or by clicking on the unsubscribe mechanism at the bottom of each email or by replying to an email received with the word “Stop” or “Unsubscribe”.

8. OTHER

8.1 Modifications

This policy may be revised from time to time. Such changes will be made available in the manner prescribed by law. If You do not agree to such changes, You must cease accessing and using the Site before such changes take effect; thereafter, all access and use shall constitute acceptance of such changes.

8.2 Severability

If any provision is in conflict with any law or is unenforceable, then such provision shall be severable from the remaining provisions, and deemed rewritten so as to be valid and enforceable while respecting, to the greatest extent possible, its original purpose.

8.3 Force majeure

MPSG shall not be liable for any loss caused by a situation of force majeure.

8.4 Applicable laws

This policy is governed by the laws in force in Quebec, to the exclusion of any principle or rule that may lead to the application of foreign laws. Any dispute that cannot be resolved by direct negotiation in good faith shall be submitted to the courts of the province of Quebec, which shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle such dispute.

Last modification: November 26, 2024

Approved by the Privacy Officer