FINTRAC
What Is FINTRAC?
FINTRAC is an abbreviation for the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Center of Canada, the financial intelligence unit that screens monetary transactions to distinguish and forestall illegal activities, for example, money laundering and financing of psychological militant organizations. The center reports to the Minister of Finance, who thus is accountable to Parliament. FINTRAC is settled in Ottawa and has offices in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver.
Sarah Paquet is the director and chief executive officer of FINTRAC. For the 2019-20 budget year, the agency intended to spend C$53 million and utilize 367 full-time equivalent staff.
How FINTRAC Works
FINTRAC was established in 2000. It screens financial transaction reports for suspicious behavior and to safeguard the integrity and security of Canada's financial transactions. As part of its operations, it gathers personal data from individuals and organizations. The agency's tasks include:
- Getting financial transaction reports
- Protecting the data under its influence
- Revealing examples of money laundering and psychological militant financing
- Agreeing with every significant guideline, for example, the Privacy Act
- Giving data from its discoveries to the public
FINTRAC works separately from other legal specialists, however is authorized to share the data it finds with them. For instance, on the off chance that FINTRAC distinguishes a financial crook (or suspect), law enforcement agencies would should be told to confine or capture the individual. FINTRAC is under the domain of Canada's Minister of Finance and was laid out as part of the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act.
As part of a government organization, FINTRAC must report its discoveries as per the Access to Information Act, which requires government data to be accessible to the public.
Beginning around 2002, FINTRAC has been a member of the Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units, a global network of financial analysis organizations that team up to combat money laundering and psychological militant financing on an international level. Other conspicuous Egmont Group members incorporate the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in the United States and the National Crime Agency (NCA) in the U.K.
2,276
The number disclosures of actionable financial intelligence FINTRAC made in the 2018-19 reporting period.
Special Considerations for FINTRAC
Since FINTRAC gathers individuals' [personal data](/personally-recognizable data pii), it is required to comply to regulations under Canada's Privacy Act, which determines that personal data must be utilized according to the purpose for which it was collected. Moreover, individuals reserve the option to access their own data and make any fundamental amendments. FINTRAC must safeguard this personal data from unauthorized disclosure.
Audits in 2013 and 2009 by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) revealed that FINTRAC collected data not applicable to its drives. Following the 2009 audit, FINTRAC pledged to reduce the data it held to an absolute least. The subsequent 2013 audit revealed that this reduction didn't happen. The OPC and different pundits stood up against this pointless hoarding of data, forcing FINTRAC to embrace speedier answers for decreasing the data it accumulates and keeps up with.
Features
- In 2018-19 reporting period, it uncovered 2,276 instances of actionable intelligence in support of examinations concerning money laundering and psychological oppressor funding.
- The financial intelligence unit surveys in excess of 25 million transaction reports consistently.
- FINTRAC screens financial transactions to recognize and forestall money laundering, psychological militant funding and other illegal activities.
