Staples Canada did not fully delete personal info from returned laptops: commissioner
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Monthly Digital Subscription
$1 per week for 24 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $4.00 plus GST every four weeks. After 24 weeks, price increases to the regular rate of $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
Monthly Digital Subscription
$4.99/week*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
The federal privacy watchdog has found Staples Canada did not fully remove personal information from returned laptops that it later resold.
The Privacy Commissioner of Canada says its staff recently analyzed laptops returned by customers to four Ontario Staples stores and found 23 per cent of the devices had personal information including names, email addresses, account info, email fragments and partial images of faces.
It gave Staples nine months to develop clear standards for wiping devices, improve staff training and hire an independent third-party to conduct an annual spot check on returned devices.
The commissioner started looking into the retailer’s data policies after a former Staples sales associate alleged laptops were not always wiped following their return.
In some cases, the complainant said the computers were stored with the previous owner’s username and password showing on the device. In at least one instance, he saw a laptop resold that still had unwiped personal information from a previous customer.
The commissioner had audited Staples in 2011 over similar concerns and says its new investigation revealed that some of the same problems persisted 15 years later.
Adrian Lang, Staples Canada’s chief legal and privacy officer, says the company accepts the commissioner’s recommendations and will enhance its training and procedures.
“Staples Canada takes seriously the importance of protecting its customers’ personal information, and has policies and processes in place to do so,” she said in an emailed statement.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 13, 2026.