Global Privacy Notice

Holding ourselves to the highest standards of integrity

We are firmly committed to your privacy.

Our Global Privacy Notice

At RBC, we are dedicated to protecting your privacy and safeguarding the personal information you have entrusted to us.

We strive to earn the right to be our clients’ first choice, and we hold ourselves to the highest standards to build trust. Our privacy management practices, including RBC’s Code of Conduct, are based on these values and comply with applicable laws and regulations.

The following commitments apply to all our dealings with our prospective, current, and former clients, as well as individuals whose information we collect or process in connection with servicing our clients. This Privacy Notice is part of every product or service agreement. If there is a difference between this Privacy Notice and any agreement, this Notice takes priority.

Accountability and Privacy By Design

At RBC, we are dedicated to protecting the personal information entrusted to us. That commitment is fundamental to the way we do business and is reflected in our privacy policies and practices. RBC’s Global Privacy Office led by our Chief Privacy Officer, is responsible for overall privacy governance. Privacy Officers around the globe support businesses, functions, and regions with expert advice. All our employees receive mandatory privacy and security training.

Contact Details

If you have questions regarding privacy, there are different ways for you to contact us:

If you need to escalate a privacy complaint, you may escalate to the RBC Chief Privacy Officer:

Office of the RBC Chief Privacy Officer

PO Box 7500, Station A

Toronto, ON M5W 1P9

General Questions: for questions regarding general privacy matters, including to learn more about our use of automated processing.

Make a Complaint: if you have problems, concerns or wish to provide us with your general feedback.

UK and European Union residents and citizens can contact RBC’s Data Protection Officer, via email: DPO@rbc.com

Clients of RBC Asia Pacific (APAC), can contact the APAC Privacy Officer, via email: dpo_sg@rbc.com

If you have concerns with how we handle your personal information, you have the right to contact the privacy/data protection regulator in your country. In Canada, please contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

For privacy/data protection regulators in the United Kingdom, the European Union, and the Asia Pacific region, please contact:

Data Protection Authorities - UK and EU
France	Commission Nationale de l'Informatique et des Libertés - CNIL
Germany	Die Bundesbeauftragte für den Datenschutz und die Informationsfreiheit
Guernsey	Office of the Data Protection Authority
Ireland	Data Protection Commissioner
Italy	Garante per la protezione dei dati personali
Jersey	Office of the Information Commissioner
Netherlands	Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens
Spain	Agencia de Protección de Datos
Switzerland	Eidg. Datenschutz- und Öffentlichkeitsbeauftragter
United Kingdom	Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)

Data Protection Authorities - APAC
Australia	Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC)
China	Cyberspace Administration of China
Hong Kong	Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data - PCPD
Japan	Personal Information Protection Commission Japan
Malaysia	The Department of Personal Data Protection (JPDP)
Singapore	Personal Data Protection Commission Singapore- PDPC

EU Citizens and Residents

The Global Data Protection Regulation applies to personal information processing in the EU, and targeted processing of EU citizen and resident personal information. If you are an EU citizen or resident interacting with RBC, you can refer to the relevant Privacy Notices below:

Wealth Management Privacy Notice (EU) (PDF)
Investor Services European Privacy Policy Statement

California Residents

The California Consumer Privacy Act, as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (“CPRA”), affords Consumers residing in California certain rights with respect to their Personal Information. If you are an individual California Consumer interacting with RBC you can refer to the relevant Privacy Notices below:

City National Bank California Privacy Notice
RBC Bank California Privacy Notice
RBC Capital Markets, LLC Privacy Policy

What Information We Collect

Most of the information we collect is collected when you interact directly with us, for example when you:

apply for a product or service;
communicate, interact, transact with or through us; or
sign up for special offers, enter a contest or complete a survey.

We also collect financial and other information about you from other sources including:

credit bureaus;
references you have provided to us; and
other financial institutions.

We may also collect personal information about you from third parties in accordance with their terms and conditions and privacy policies. Third parties that may share personal information with us may include:

third party identity verification services;
commercially available sources such as research firms and mailing list providers;
public sources such as internet news and social media sites, and government agencies, registries, or public records.

The categories of personal information we collect depend on the products and services you have with us, and your use of RBC’s websites, applications, and channels. Over the past 12 months and on an ongoing basis or as needed, the information we may collect includes:

Name,
signature samples,
address,
telephone numbers,
title,
email address,
date of birth,
tax identification number,
account numbers,
credit card numbers,
debit card number,
passport number,
driver’s license or province/state identification card number,
insurance policy number,
information on the device you use to interact with us information (e.g., device model and identifiers, browser type, IP address, security cookies)
account information like username and password

Information pertaining to business clients will include financial status and details on the owners, management, and directors.

Records of personal property, products or services purchased, obtained, or considered, or purchasing and other activities;
Information related to transactions arising from your relationship with and through us, and from other financial institutions, including point of sale details; and
Information you provide on an application for our products and services, such as your annual income, investments, account balance, financial liabilities, transaction history.

Recordings and/or transcripts of telephone conversations, such as those that are recorded with the RBC Advice Centre.
Video surveillance recordings captured by security cameras.

Fingerprint, signature, voiceprint, images used for facial matching (e.g. a photo/video self-footage “selfie” used for remote ID verification in online banking)

Browsing history, search history, information regarding your interaction with a web site, mobile applications, application, or advertisements on RBC owned properties. To learn more, please visit Privacy Notices (rbc.com)

Information about the approximate physical location of your device, with your consent, for purposes such as:

To provide a location-dependent service (e.g. to allow you to locate a nearby ATM or RBC branch);
To inform you of nearby offers;
To validate user identity; or
To prevent, detect or suppress crime or financial abuse.

occupation,
education,
place of employment,
employment history,
titles or positions with government entities, employers, or companies you own,
salary or self-employment income.

Information you provide during conversations or other communications with us which may include family details, health records, life events, goals and your opinions and issues you may have encountered.
Additional information may be requested to help us determine your eligibility for products and services that we offer.

How We Use Your Information

We only use your personal information if we have a legal basis to do so. This includes sharing the information among and outside of RBC companies.

We may use your personal information:

with your consent;
for the purposes communicated to you at the time of collection or in your agreement(s) with us and in this notice;
to fulfil a contract we have with you to provide products or services covered by your account agreement;
to verify your identity and investigate your personal background, as permitted by law;
to verify your identity and to authenticate you when you contact us;
to assess and determine your eligibility for products and services, using your credit bureau and other information;
to better understand your financial situation and offer financial advice;
to communicate benefits, features and other information about products and services you have with us;
to help us understand the interests of our current and prospective clients and to improve our products and services;
to ensure we can act on your instructions (e.g., by recording phone conversations, maintaining records of email communications and in-person conversations);
if you are an Avion Rewards member, to deliver tailored offers and other member benefits with meaningful value;
for legitimate business purposes; as permitted by law;
to manage risks and operations;
to comply with legal and regulatory obligations;
to prevent and detect fraud and suppress financial abuse;
to operate the payment card network;
to establish, exercise or defend legal claims or proceedings; and
to protect client and employee safety, and to protect against theft and property damage in and around physical premises.

If we have your tax identification number (such as social insurance number (SIN) or social security number), and you hold a product generating income, we may use it for tax related purposes and share it with the appropriate government agencies. In limited circumstances we may use your SIN to verify your income with tax authorities to prevent fraud.

We may also share your SIN with credit agencies as an aid to identify you and to connect your multiple profiles across RBC companies; you may refuse or withdraw your consent for use of your SIN for these purposes. For more information, go to: Your Choice

We also use personal information to perform statistical analysis and create data insights from current, former, and prospective clients; including the use of predictive models. This analysis is done either at the aggregate level or through de-identified information to ensure the data cannot be used to reasonably identify you or any other individual. The outputs of this analysis are used for marketing purposes, to enhance our products, manage our risk and to generally provide improved services to our clients.

Sensitive information will never, be used or shared without your consent, unless allowed or required by law.

We may communicate with you through telephone, email, text, mail, mobile applications, and other channels using contact information you have provided.
We may wish to send you information on other products and services we offer and on third parties that we believe may benefit you. We will only do so when it is consistent with the choices you have made.
If you deal with multiple RBC companies, for example banking, insurance, and investment providers, we may, where not prohibited by law, consolidate information to better manage our relationship with you.
We use artificial intelligence (AI) in a responsible manner for purposes of informing business and client interactions, and protection against fraud and other security risks. RBC adheres to a set of Responsible AI Principles when using AI as part of operations.
We may use automated processing to safeguard you and RBC from fraud, security threats, and criminal activities. We may also use automated processing to make decisions about you, including credit and loan adjudication, where applicable.

Under certain circumstances, and for the purposes set out in this Privacy Notice, your personal information including some or all the categories of information set out under What Information We Collect is shared or may be shared among RBC companies, outside service providers or third parties for the purposes outlined in How We Use Your Information.

RBC Companies

Sharing your personal information among RBC companies may be necessary to provide you with the financial products and services you have requested. Sharing can also allow us to help you achieve your financial goals, as part of building and maintaining a knowledgeable advice-based relationship with you. We may also share this information to better understand your financial needs and to identify products and services we believe may benefit you.

Your personal information is only shared according to your choice. If you prefer that we not share your information among RBC companies, or if you do not wish to receive special offers and promotions, kindly let us know by following the instructions in Your Choice.

If you choose not to have your information shared, you will not be refused credit or other services for that decision. We will respect your choice and may advise other RBC companies of your preference for the sole purpose of honouring your choices.

We share your information among RBC companies for the purposes outlined in How We Use Your Information.

RBC Employees

Your personal information will be accessed by RBC employees and RBC contingent workers who have a legitimate business purpose for using it.

Unauthorized access, use and disclosure of information by an employee or contingent worker of RBC is strictly prohibited. All employees and contingent workers are required to maintain the confidentiality of client information at all times. Failure to do so will result in appropriate disciplinary measures, which may include dismissal.

Outside Service Providers

We may share personal information with service providers we use to perform specialized services on our behalf including financial services, data processing, data analytics and research, marketing, and operational activities. They are provided only the information necessary to perform the services. In addition, we require them to protect the information in accordance with applicable law and in a manner that is consistent with our privacy policies, security practices and RBC’s Supplier Code of Conduct.

Other Third Parties

We will only share your information with other third parties as permitted or required by law:

to comply with laws, regulations, subpoena, or court order;
to respond to valid and authorized information requests from domestic and international authorities;
to prevent and detect fraud and suppress financial abuse; and
to protect the personal safety of employees, clients or other third parties on RBC property.

We also share aggregated information such as insights, trends, or analytics with outside service providers and other third parties to use for their own benefit. These purposes include products and services improvement and supporting business development. For example they may create sales performance insights or develop customer demographic and behavioral insights. We also share aggregated information with third parties for benchmarking, understanding, and forecasting spending patterns and macroeconomic trend analysis.

Jurisdictions to Which We Transfer Your Information

Your personal information may be transmitted through, stored, or processed in countries, states, or provinces other than where you are based. This information is bound by the laws of those jurisdictions and may be disclosed in accordance with those laws. We will take measures to protect your personal information with contractual clauses or other safeguards.

Countries where your personal information may be transmitted, stored, or processed may include, but are not limited to:

Canada
United States of America
European Union member states
United Kingdom
India
China
Singapore
Malaysia

Keeping Your Information Safe

Protecting your personal information is fundamental to the way we do business. It is critical that we ensure the information we have about you is accurate and complete. As we make decisions based on the information we have, we encourage you to help us keep your information current.

We keep your personal information for as long as required to comply with all business, legal and regulatory record keeping requirements, aligned with our internal policies and retention schedules.

To help protect your identity under certain circumstances, we may modify your personal information by making it anonymous (e.g. anonymization) to ensure you cannot be identified.

Your Rights in Respect of Your Personal Information

You periodically receive information in the form of transaction activity records, including account statements and trade confirmations. This information is routinely available to you through secure online and mobile sites, paper statements, and telephone banking.

If you want to access any information we hold about you, request a correction, restrict, or request portability or removal of the personal data we process about you, you may write to, or send an email to the branch or office where you do business. To avoid delays, please provide sufficient detail to permit us to identify you and the specific information that you are requesting.

For residents and citizens of the UK or the European Union, you may request correction, restricted processing, portability, or removal of the personal data that we process about you, as well as to object to processing of your data at any time by sending a request to DPO@rbc.com

For residents of California, you may request access to your personal information or request deletion of the personal data we have about you, by using the link below:

CCPA Consumer Privacy Request Form

Please note that there may be instances where access may be restricted as permitted or required by law. We will advise you of the reasons for restricting access subject to any legal or regulatory limitations.

Your Choice

You are always in control of your personal information and providing us with your information is always your choice. If you object to the processing of your personal information, you can choose to withdraw any consent you previously provided us, and we will respect that choice in accordance with our legal obligations.

However, your decision to withhold details may limit or prevent us from providing holistic financial advice based on your specific needs or providing products or services you have asked for.

If you do not wish to receive promotional materials from us, or you do not want your personal information shared with other RBC companies, you may contact your relationship manager or account representative, or simply:

Contact your nearest branch or local office

Visit http://www.rbc.com/contactus/

TDD/TTY Users (teletypewriter for the Hearing Impaired)

Call 1-800-661-12751-800-661-1275

Non-Discrimination

We will not discriminate against you because you elect to exercise any of the rights related to your personal information, including but not limited to:

Denying you products or services;
Charging you or suggesting different prices or rates for products or services, including through the use of discounts or other benefits or imposing penalties on you;
Providing a different level or quality of products or services to you.