Complaint: Citing paragraph 68(a), Industry Canada told a requester that it did not have to release an electronic copy of the most recent version of an online database, since its contents were available to anyone with Internet access.

Investigation: The OIC learned that the database’s search function limited the requester’s ability to obtain information in a useful format. During the investigation, the institution offered to train the requester on using the database but never followed up on this offer. Industry Canada also modernized the database, but the information the requester sought was still difficult to retrieve.

Outcome: After a meeting with the requester and the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada, which had become the custodian of the database, Industry Canada agreed to extract the specific raw data the requester sought and provided it at significant cost.

Information Commissioner’s position:

• When institutions make databases available to the public, the data must be truly accessible and the information the databases contain retrievable, based on the public’s needs.
• Institutions should not impose a method or format for accessing the data that may not be conducive to either regular or more computer-savvy users.
• Open government principles include proactive disclosure and the practice of providing data to the public in reusable form based on open standards and formats.