Limiting Use, Disclosure and Retention

A privacy principle requiring that personal information be used, shared, and retained only as necessary for identified purposes or as required by law. This composite principle from PIPEDA addresses three key aspects: use limitation (processing only for intended purposes), disclosure limitation (sharing only when appropriate), and retention limitation (keeping only as long as necessary). The principle prevents purpose creep where data collected for one reason gets used for unrelated purposes. It requires honoring the purposes for which data was collected, limiting sharing to appropriate recipients, deleting data when purposes are fulfilled, and obtaining fresh consent for materially different uses. Organizations should document purposes and limitations, implement technical controls enforcing limitations, train staff on appropriate use boundaries, establish retention schedules, and regularly purge unnecessary data. This principle recognizes that collection is just the beginning—ongoing use, disclosure, and retention must also be limited.