Canadian Police Information Centre

Last updated

The Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC; French : Centre d'information de la police canadienne, CIPC) is the central police database where Canada's law enforcement agencies can access information on a number of matters. It is Canada's only national law enforcement networking computer system ensuring officers all across the country can access the same information. There are approximately 3 million files generated each year and is the responsibility of the originating agency to ensure the data integrity of each file. [1]

Contents

CPIC was approved for use by the Treasury Board of Canada and became operational in 1972. It is maintained by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) with the central registry located at the RCMP Headquarters in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is one part of an umbrella program covering several services called the "National Police Services (NPS)". Other functions within NPS include the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, Canadian Police College (CPC), Criminal Intelligence Service Canada (CISC), the National Forensic Laboratory Services (NFLS), the National DNA Data Bank (NDDB), the Canadian Criminal Real Time Identification Services (CCRTIS), the Canadian Firearms Program (CFP), Violent Crime Linkage Analysis System and National Sex Offender Registry, and the National Cybercrime Coordination Unit (NC3). [2]

CPIC is interfaced with the United States National Crime Information Center and National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System [3] but not all information are shared. For example, Wandering Persons Registry information is not shared across the border. [4]

In order for a government agency to access CPIC, they must agree to abide by the rules set out in the CPIC Reference Manual and be approved by the CPIC Advisory Committee, composed of 26 senior police officers from municipal and provincial police forces, the Ontario Police Commission and the RCMP. [5] Non-policing agencies must also enter a memorandum of understanding with the RCMP and may be audited from time to time for compliance. [3]

CPIC is broken down into four data banks: Investigative, Identification, Intelligence and Ancillary [6] which contain information on:

Local, municipal and provincial police services in Canada, as well as federal law enforcement agencies such as the Canada Border Services Agency and Military Police maintain their own local records in addition to CPIC records. Local records are maintained of all contact with police for a variety of reasons, and may or may not contain information that would be entered into the CPIC system. All CPIC agencies are subject to audit on a 4-year cycle. All records added to the CPIC system must satisfy stringent entry criteria in that every record must be, valid, accurate, complete in nature and compliant with input rules. The province of British Columbia has mandated by law that all police forces share a platform, known as PRIME-BC. In Ontario local records are now kept in systems known either as NICHE or Versadex, depending on the Municipalities choice of implementation. In Quebec the system used is called CRPQ (Centre de Reseignement des Policiers du Québec). The RCMP runs a similar system called PROS (Police Reporting Occurrence System) in provinces where they are providing contract policing as well for federal policing.

WikiLeaks controversy

In 2011, the Toronto-based Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office announced it had received numerous complaints from people who were denied entry into the United States, because their names were on the American Department of Homeland Security watchlist and the names were provided by the Canadian Police Information Centre, which is available to American law enforcement authorities, according to WikiLeaks. [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Criminal record</span> Record of a persons criminal history

A criminal record is a record of a person's criminal convictions history. The information included in a criminal record, and the existence of a criminal record, varies between countries and even between jurisdictions within a country. In most cases it lists all non-expunged criminal offences and may also include traffic offences such as speeding and drunk driving. In most countries, a criminal record is limited to unexpunged and unexpired actual convictions, while in some it can also include arrests, charges dismissed, charges pending and charges of which the individual has been acquitted. The term rap sheet refers to Record of Arrest and Prosecution, similar to a criminal record.

Firearms in Canada are federally regulated through the Firearms Act, the Criminal Code, and the Canadian Firearms Program, a program operated within the RCMP. Regulation is largely about licensing and registration of firearms, including air guns with a muzzle velocity of more than 500 ft/s or 150 m/s and muzzle energy greater than 4.2 ft⋅lb or 5.7 J.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canada Border Services Agency</span> Canadian agency in charge of border security

The Canada Border Services Agency is a federal law enforcement agency that is responsible for border control, immigration enforcement, and customs services in Canada.

The Canadian Firearms Registry is the gun registry of Canada, requiring the registration of all restricted and prohibited firearms in the country. It is managed by the Canadian Firearms Program of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) as part of the RCMP's responsibilities under the Firearms Act, 1995.

CrimTrac was a former Agency in the Attorney-General's Department that was merged with the Australian Crime Commission on 1 July 2016 to form the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission. Crimtrac had been responsible for developing and maintaining national information-sharing services between state, territory and federal law enforcement agencies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Firearms Program</span> Canadian government program

Canadian Firearms Program, formerly Canada Firearms Centre is a Canadian government program within the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Policing Support Services, responsible for licensing and regulating firearms in Canada.

The Police National Computer (PNC) is a database used by law enforcement organisations across the United Kingdom and other non-law enforcement agencies. Originally developed in the early 1970s, PNC1 went 'live' in 1974, providing UK police forces with online access to the lost/stolen vehicle database. The vehicle owners application quickly followed, giving the police online access to the names/addresses of every vehicle owner in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Forces National Investigation Service</span> Law enforcement agency

The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service (CFNIS) is the investigative arm of the Canadian Forces Military Police. The CFNIS is an independent military police unit that provides an independent investigative capability for the purpose of fair and impartial administration of military justice.

A discharge is a type of sentence imposed by a court whereby no punishment is imposed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Halifax Regional Police</span> Police department in Halifax, Canada

The Halifax Regional Police (HRP) is one of a number of law enforcement agencies operating in the Halifax, Nova Scotia; the other primaries being the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian Forces Military Police. The city also is home to a small detachment of the Canadian National Railway Police.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Special Investigations Unit (Ontario)</span> Civilian police oversight agency of Ontario, Canada

The Special Investigations Unit is the civilian police oversight agency of the province of Ontario, Canada. The SIU is responsible for investigating circumstances involving police that have resulted in a death or serious injury, or if a firearm was discharged at a person. The unit also investigates allegations of sexual assault. The unit's goal is to ensure that criminal law is applied appropriately to police conduct, as determined through independent investigations, increasing public confidence in the police services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Law enforcement in Canada</span>

Law enforcement in Canada is the responsibility of police services, special constabularies, and civil law enforcement agencies, which are operated by every level of government, some private and Crown corporations, and First Nations. In contrast to the United States or Mexico, and with the exception of the Unité permanente anticorruption in Quebec and the Organized Crime Agency of British Columbia, there are no organizations dedicated exclusively to the investigation of criminal activity in Canada. Criminal investigations are instead conducted by police services, which maintain specialized criminal investigation units in addition to their mandate for emergency response and general community safety.

Criminal Intelligence Service Canada is an inter-agency organization in Canada designed to coordinate and share criminal intelligence amongst member police forces. Established in 1970, the CISC has a central bureau in Ottawa and ten bureaus in each province offering services to over 400 law enforcement agencies in Canada.

A government database collects information for various reasons, including climate monitoring, securities law compliance, geological surveys, patent applications and grants, surveillance, national security, border control, law enforcement, public health, voter registration, vehicle registration, social security, and statistics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Columbia Sheriff Service</span> Law enforcement agency for BC courts

The British Columbia Sheriff Service (BCSS) is a provincial law enforcement agency overseen by the Ministry of the Attorney General in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Founded in 1857, it is the oldest law enforcement agency in the province. Sheriffs are provincial peace officers appointed under the BC Sheriff Act and BC Police Act with authority to enforce all relevant federal and provincial acts, including the criminal code throughout British Columbia while in the lawful execution of their duties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Security guard</span> Person employed to protect properties or people

A security guard is a person employed by a government or private party to protect the employing party's assets from a variety of hazards by enforcing preventative measures. Security guards do this by maintaining a high-visibility presence to deter illegal and inappropriate actions, looking for signs of crime or other hazards, taking action to minimize damage, and reporting any incidents to their clients and emergency services, as appropriate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alberta Sheriffs Branch</span> Canadian law enforcement agency

The Alberta Sheriffs Branch is a provincial law enforcement agency overseen by the Ministry of Public Safety and Emergency Services of the province of Alberta, Canada. Under the authority of the Peace Officer Act, Alberta Sheriffs are provincial peace officers with jurisdiction over the province of Alberta. The premier of Alberta has the authority to grant emergency police powers to all Alberta sheriffs during major emergencies within the province. The Alberta Sheriffs Branch is the largest sheriff service in Canada.

A law enforcement agency (LEA) is any government agency responsible for law enforcement within a specific jurisdiction through the employment and deployment of law enforcement officers and their resources. The most common type of law enforcement agency is the police, but various other forms exist as well, including agencies that focus on specific legal violation, or are organized and overseen by certain authorities. They typically have various powers and legal rights to allow them to perform their duties, such as the power of arrest and the use of force.

Criminal records in the United States contain records of arrests, criminal charges and the disposition of those charges. Criminal records are compiled and updated on local, state, and federal levels by government agencies, most often law enforcement agencies. Their primary purpose is to present a comprehensive criminal history for a specific individual.

The RCMP "C" Division is the Royal Canadian Mounted Police division responsible for federal policing in the Province of Quebec. Approximately 1,500 police officers, civilian members and public servants work to a number of different lines of effort, including financial integrity, national and border security, and organized crime enforcement. The RCMP in Quebec relies on dedicated resources to conduct investigations, provide VIP protective services and undertake crime prevention initiatives in communities in all areas of Quebec.

References

  1. ↑ "Review of the Personal Information Handling Practices of the Canadian Firearms Program". Archived from the original on 2009-04-08. Retrieved 2009-01-21.
  2. ↑ "National Police Services (NPS)". Royal Canadian Mounted Police. R.C.M.P. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  3. 1 2 Privacy Impact Assessment - Canadian Police Information Centre
  4. ↑ Safely Home Wandering Registry [ permanent dead link ]
  5. ↑ "ORDER M-128". Archived from the original on 2009-11-14. Retrieved 2009-01-21.
  6. ↑ "RCMP Datasheet" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-01-24. Retrieved 2009-01-21.
  7. ↑ Bridge, Sarah (September 9, 2011). "Canadians denied U.S. entry over mental illness". CBC News . Retrieved February 19, 2017.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.