Privacy, Confidentiality and Security of Information Policy

Our Privacy, Confidentiality and Security of Information Policy demonstrates our committment to protecting all forms of information collected from clients and research participants.

 

 

This policy applies to all client and personal information collected or used in the course of conducting our business. It covers all client information and research participant data housed at Covec or stored on our server. Confidentially clauses are included in all Covec contracts of employment and anyone at Covec who has access to such information or data must follow this policy.

 

 

All information received from clients will be treated as confidential and will not be used for any purpose other than to fulfil our contractual obligations. We keep client information secure at all times, and prevent the use and disclosure of it by our employees or any third parties.

 

 

When collecting personal information we ensure that respondents are aware of the purpose of the collection, and any quality control activity involving re-contact.

 

All responses to our research are completely confidential. We collect data in our studies for research purposes only, and our use of that information is limited to that purpose. All reasonable steps are taken to ensure that personal information collected by Covec is adequate, relevant and not excessive in relation to the purpose of the research from which they are collected. Research outputs are reported at an aggregated level sufficient to maintain the confidentiality of individual respondents. Where absolutely necessary, unit records will be shared with approved researchers under controlled conditions. In this instance, confidentiality will be protected via appropriate methods. 

 

We do not disclose the personal identity of a respondent to any party unless the respondent has explicitly expressed this wish and/or provided their explicit consent. We do not rent, sell or give personal information to any third party for the purpose of directly marketing any products or services.

 

 

Electronic data of a sensitive nature are password protected and any hard copies are securely stored in locked premises. The information collected is preserved no longer than required for the purpose of the research. An up-to-date staff list of all those who have access to such areas is maintained. Names and/or addresses of survey respondents are not stored within databases used for statistical analysis. 

 

 

Research participation is voluntary and sample members always have the opportunity to decline involvement or to “opt out” of the research after agreeing to participate. We do not collect personal information without research participant consent. 

At their request, we give research participants access to the personal information we have collected about them. We correct any information that is inaccurate or incomplete, change their consent status, or have their personal information deleted.

Information security

 

We maintain all necessary physical, electronic and procedural security measures to help safeguard client data and personal information. Third parties providing services for a specific piece of research are required to sign a confidentiality agreement before receiving access to client data or personal information associated with that research. The confidentiality agreement requires the third parties to maintain security measures at least as stringent as ours with respect to such information.

 

 

Under certain circumstances permitted or required by law (for example, in connection with law enforcement investigations), we may be required to disclose client data or personal information without giving notice. 

 

 

We do not contact children under the age of 18 without consent from a parent or guardian.

In cases where contact with individuals under the age of 18 is required, we seek to obtain the permission of a parent or guardian whenever possible.

 

 

We aim to comply with the MRSNZ Code of Conduct at all times. Our internal Privacy Officer is available if you have questions about our Privacy, Confidentiality and Security of Information Policy, or for processing a complaint. If you are concerned about our use of personal or client information please contact us by email at privacy@covec.co.nz or by telephone at +64 9 916 2017.

 

 

We may update our Privacy, Confidentiality and Security of Information Policy from time to time by posting an amended version of the statement on the Covec website (www.covec.co.nz). If at any time we decide to use personally identifiable information in a different manner than was stated at the time it was collected, we will notify the affected respondents directly via email for consent.