How does Bell collect, use, store and protect your personal information

Personal information includes your address, phone numbers and other information about the Bell products that you subscribe to, such as your:

• Calling features.
• Bell Mobility call records.
• Bell Internet service usage.
• Bell Satellite TV programming package.
• Bell Home phone number.
• Long-distance usage.
• Internet surfing habits.
• Bell account status.
• Method of payment.
• Credit card or bank account numbers.

We may ask you to confirm some of the personal details that are already on your account. This is to confirm that we are speaking to the correct person, and protects you against the accidental release of your private information to someone who isn’t authorized to have it.

The kinds of things we might ask you to confirm could include details of your payment habits, service usage or identification that you might have used when you first requested your service.

We collect information to:

• Establish and maintain a responsible commercial relationship with you. For example, we may collect information to confirm your identify or to establish credit worthiness.
• Understand your needs and preferences, to make recommendations for products, services and bundled discounts.
• Understand who the people are that use our products and services, how they use them, and how we can improve them.
• Manage and develop Bell's business and operations, including personnel and technology matters. For example, we monitor the volume of traffic on our networks so that we can make sure we have all the technology we need to support the volume. And we track product sales to determine the success of features, promotions and pricing.
• Meet legal and regulatory requirements. For example, we may be required to collect information by a court order or to demonstrate compliance with a CRTC requirement.

We collect information:

• During your application process.
• When communicating with you.
• When engaging in a transaction (e.g. payment, credit, sale, refund).
• When providing you with a service.

We keep records of your purchases and your use of Bell products and services, and will sometimes ask you for other information. We use these details to serve you better. For example, we may ask for your email address so that we can quickly send you help desk and user guide information.

We also collect information about you from third parties that have the right to disclose such information to us. For example, under federal law, we are allowed to collect, use and disclose publicly available information such as a directory listing of your name, address, telephone number and email address without your consent.

Outside organizations:

We do not usually provide personal information to any party outside of the Bell Companies. However, there are limited circumstances in which it is necessary for us to do so. These third parties may include:

• An agent acting on behalf of Bell, such as a company hired to perform installation work on our behalf.
• Another communications service provider, in order to offer efficient and effective communications services (e.g., to provide mobile service while roaming in another company's coverage area) or as required by law.
• A collection agency, for the express purpose of the collection of past due bills.

When we provide personal information to third parties, we give only that information that is required under the specific circumstances. That information is used only for the purpose stated and is subject to strict terms of confidentiality. The employees of the companies that we share this information with must meet and respect our privacy standards.

Opt out: I don’t want my information shared with outside organizations.

If you prefer not to have your listing information provided to outside organizations, please call us at 1 866 310-BELL (2355) or visit our contact us section for more options.

Among the Bell Companies

Occasionally we may share information between the Bell Companies to help understand your information, communication and entertainment needs, and to provide you with relevant information to meet those needs.

Opt in: I give my permission to share my information among the Bell Companies:

You can give us your permission online to share information among the Bell Companies.

Opt out: I don’t want my information shared among the Bell Companies.

If you don't want your information shared among the Bell companies, call us at 1 866 310-BELL (2355) or visit our contact us section for more options.

Please note that when you choose to opt in or opt out, it may take us up to 30 days to update our databases.

Legal and emergency exceptions

It’s important to note that in certain circumstances, we may collect, use or disclose personal information without your knowledge or consent. For example:

• If you are breaking provincial or federal laws.
• If we are asked to comply with a subpoena, warrant or court order.
• If there is an emergency where someone’s life, health or security is threatened.

As a customer, you have the right to request a copy of the personal information that we have collected about you. Please make your request in writing to the Bell Privacy Ombudsman at:

The Office of the Bell Privacy Ombudsman
160 Elgin Street
19th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario
K2P 2C4

or by email to privacy@bell.ca

Please note that your right to access is limited to your "personal information" which is defined as information about an identifiable individual. If the documents you request also contain non-personal information that is not about you, that information will be left off or deleted from the original document. This may include information about Bell’s internal practices, policies, organizational structure or network architecture and operations, or personal information concerning a third party such as an employee.

In some cases, personal information collected by the Bell Companies may be stored and processed outside of Canada by agents acting on our behalf. This information may include account details, such as your billing preferences and preferred language, or product information, such as the types of services to which you subscribe.

While the information may be subject to the legal jurisdictions of these countries, the information is provided only after detailed contracts are set out with the companies that provide us with these services. Moreover, it may only be used for the purposes of providing the services in question.

The use of customer information in this way is governed by the Bell Privacy Policy. View details of the privacy policy.

The Bell Privacy Policy spells out the commitments of the Bell Companies and the rights of customers regarding personal information. It complies with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act and details how we implement the principles of the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) Code.

View details of the privacy policy.