FTC-Competition Bureau Information Sharing Protocol

Backgrounder

June 10, 2002

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The FTC and Canada's Competition Bureau have formalized how they will share consumer complaints and investigation information to make pursuit of cross-border fraud operators faster, more efficient, and more effective.

This protocol will streamline and enhance cooperation under prior agreements, particularly a 1995 agreement under which the governments of the United States and Canada agreed to use their best efforts to cooperate in the detection of deceptive marketing practices; to inform each other of investigations and proceedings involving cross-border deceptive marketing practices; to share information relating to enforcement; and, in appropriate cases, to coordinate enforcement. The new protocol, which was developed in a series of recent meetings, is not a single document. Rather, it includes a joint work plan stressing increased communication and setting information sharing and cooperation priorities; guidance to staff on what information can be shared under applicable law and rules; and a template that each agency will use for information requests.

While both the FTC and the Competition Bureau are subject to certain confidentiality protections that restrict their ability to share investigative information, the information sharing protocol instructs staff of both agencies to keep in regular contact to maximize the amount of information sharing and cooperation compatible with these protections. The types of information to be shared include information in the public record and, subject to confidentiality protections, consumer complaint information and consumer interview reports, information provided by anonymous informants, and opinions of expert witnesses. In certain circumstances other information will also be shared. Moreover, under a prior confidentiality agreement, the Competition Bureau has access to the more-than-half-a-million consumer complaints in the FTC's Consumer Sentinel database, which include Canadian complaints provided to the FTC by the PhoneBusters national call center in Canada.

Under the protocol, staff will submit information sharing requests in writing, using a template that the agencies have developed to streamline the information sharing process. The template provides for identification of the person(s) being investigated or proceeded against, the nature and scope of the information sought, the purpose for which the information shall be used, and any procedural or evidentiary requirements bearing on how the request should be executed. The template also contains certifications by the requesting agency regarding the use and disclosure of the information, as well as an undertaking to share the results of its investigation with the agency providing the information, consistent with applicable information sharing restrictions.