Terms of use

Welcome

Welcome to the Ontario Pension Board website (www.opb.ca), including OPB’s member (e-services) and employer portals, collectively referred to hereafter as “OPB websites”. The following terms (“Terms of Use”) govern your use of OPB websites. Please read the Terms of Use before using OPB websites. By accessing and using OPB websites, you agree to these Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy (PDF). OPB reserves the right to change these Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy without notice. OPB reserves the right to make changes or to temporarily or permanently disable OPB websites without notice. There could be a delay in posting information to OPB websites and OPB makes no guarantee the information on these websites is current, accurate and complete.

Ownership and Use

“Ontario Pension Board”, “OPB”, the OPB logo and other identifying marks are the trademarks of the Ontario Pension Board. These trademarks, including but not limited to news articles, photographs, images, illustrations, audio clips and video clips are proprietary to the OPB and are protected by Canadian and international copyright and trademark laws. Unless otherwise provided, information on OPB websites is intended for your personal and non-commercial use and may not be used or reproduced without OPB’s written authorization, and strictly for the use of registered users in the case of e-services.

No Specific Financial Advice

OPB websites do not provide specific investment, financial, tax or legal advice. In addition, the information in these websites may also be summary in nature. Your circumstances and the specific provisions of the Public Service Pension Plan (the “Plan”), the Pension Benefits Act and the Income Tax Act govern your entitlement before you make any decisions affecting your pension. You should contact OPB directly for confirmation of your entitlement. You should also consult appropriate professional advisors before making any decision. Your pension may be one of your largest assets and you should take great care before taking any actions that may affect your pension. For financial advice, please contact our experienced Certified Financial Planners. To book a session with one of these advisors, log into e-services and click Book my 1-on-1.

Privacy

To protect your privacy, OPB’s policies reflect best practices by meeting or exceeding the benchmarks set by the Canadian Standards Association and privacy legislation. We hold OPB employees and third-party service providers accountable for complying with our policies. A summary of our policies, and who to contact with questions, is contained in our Privacy Policy (PDF).

Collection and use of your personal information

OPB collects and uses your personal information so that we can properly administer your pension and benefits, respond to your inquiries, administer your e-services account and complete requests you might have to attend an educational or financial advisory session, so it is important that you keep us informed about different events and changes throughout your life, such as a change in address or a change to your spousal status or starting a family.

As a registered user of e-services, you can view and update your personal information, including your contact information and your designated beneficiaries. You can also view online documents and information about your pension, track activity and manage your e-services account and securely upload supporting documents and forms.

Use of website cookies

As described in our Privacy Policy, we use cookies to ensure everyone who uses our websites and services has the best possible experience. A cookie is a small block of data that is placed on your device by a web server supporting our websites. The cookies we use do not contain personal information about you nor are they used to track your movement across websites or to send targeted advertisements to you. The following types of cookies are used on our websites.

Session Cookies. Session cookies are stored temporarily on your device(s) when you use our websites. Session cookies allow users to be recognized with a website so any page changes or item or data selection you do is remembered from page to page. They will be removed when your browsing session ends such as by logging out using the log out button or when the session has timed out. These cookies are used to maintain the browsing session as you move between pages.

Persistent Cookies. These cookies continue to be stored after you have ended your browsing session. A persistent cookie helps us recognize you as an existing user, so it’s easier to return to our website or interact with our services without signing in again. After you sign in, a persistent cookie stays in your browser and will be read by our website when you return to one of our sites.

Authentication Cookies. Authentication cookies are used on our plan member (e-services) and employer portals for security purposes on our log-in pages to ensure that only authorized users are accessing our sites. The information collected by these cookies includes your IP address, device type, browser used and geographical information. This information is stored for 90 days.

Analytic and Research Cookies. We use Google Analytics to help us analyze use of our website(s). Analytic cookies help us understand, improve, and research products, features, and services, including when you access the website, what parts of our website you visit and for how long, and what type of devices are used to access our website such as your work computer or your mobile device. This information is used to help us improve how the website works and understand the interests of our users. Google Analytics will capture information such as device type, pages viewed, and the date and time pages were visited.

Most web browsers allow some control of cookies through the browser settings. Please refer to your browser’s “Help” option for details. Disabling cookies on our www.opb.ca website will not affect the functionality of the site. Disabling cookies on the plan member (e-services) and employer portals will prevent you from being able to access the site. To find out more about cookies, including how to see what cookies have been set and how to manage and delete them, visit wikipedia.org(opens in a new tab), allaboutcookies.org(opens in a new tab), or aboutcookies.org(opens in a new tab).

Retirement Planner

OPB's Retirement Planner is a third-party tool hosted by Alight Solutions, a third-party service provider to OPB. The Retirement Planner builds on your Public Service Pension Plan (PSPP) pension projections calculated using the Pension Estimator in our member e-services to create a snapshot of your overall financial health in retirement.

Before making any decisions based on the estimates provided in the Retirement Planner, you should consult an appropriate professional advisor. For financial advice, please contact our experienced Certified Financial Planners. To book a session with one of our advisors, log into e-services and click Book my 1-on-1.

When using the Retirement Planner, an optional feedback survey will be presented at the end of your session to help OPB assess opportunities for improvement of the member experience.

Security

Security of OPB websites and the information accessible through them is a shared responsibility between OPB and website users.

Our Commitment to Security

To prevent unauthorized access, maintain data accuracy, and ensure the correct use of information, OPB deploys robust and multi-layered security on our servers and applications, controlling access through firewalls. Regular reviews of our security practices and technology updates are performed. OPB uses many techniques to protect your information, including:

Data encryption

Once you successfully authenticate to OPB e-services, we encrypt all internet communications and transactions between your browser and OPB.

To help ensure the integrity and confidentiality of online transactions, our website uses Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) 2048-bit encryption, the Internet security standard.

Browser support

A modern and up-to-date browser is required to access OPB e-services. Older browsers such as Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge (Legacy) are not supported and should not be used.

Authentication

OPB grants access to your account only when a valid username and password are entered, and valid multi-factor authentication is confirmed.

Your password:

• Must be at least 12 characters, with at least 1 uppercase and lowercase character and 1 number.
• Must not contain any parts of your username, first name or last name.
• Must not be any of your last 12 passwords.

Multi-factor authentication options include:

• Voice call
• Email authentication
• OKta Verify
• Google Authenticator
• FIDO2

Once you are logged into your online account, your browser establishes a secure SSL connection between your computer and OPB servers.

Account protection

To prevent others from guessing your password, OPB will disable your online account after five consecutive unsuccessful attempts to login.

If this occurs to you, you will receive an email notification informing you that your account has been locked out. If you suspect that your account is being abused, please contact us at clientservice@opb.ca.

We will never send you unsolicited emails or SMS messages asking for your e-services password or username.

Session time-out

Whenever you are logged in to your e-services account, and you have been inactive for more than 30 minutes, your online account is automatically closed and you will need to login again.

Your responsibility for protecting your e-services account

It is your responsibility to choose a strong password and to keep it safe. Anyone who has access to your login credentials could view or alter your confidential information.

If you’ve registered for e-services using a work email address, please update your work email with your personal email address when you leave your employment.

OPB will not be held responsible for any loss or damages incurred due to unauthorized use of your password or as a result of your failure to appropriately secure your account.

Tips for creating a strong password

A strong password can be memorable to you but nearly impossible for someone else to guess. Learn what makes a good password, then follow these tips to create your own.

1. Make your password unique.
   • Use a different password for each of your important accounts, like your email and online banking.
   • Reusing passwords for important accounts is risky. If someone gets your password for one account, they could access your email, address and even your money.
2. Make your password longer and more memorable. Long passwords are stronger, so make your password at least 12 characters long. These tips can help you create longer passwords that are easier to remember. Try to use:
   • A lyric from a song or poem
   • A meaningful quote from a movie or speech
   • A passage from a book
   • A series of words that are meaningful to you
   • An abbreviation: Make a password from the first letter of each word in a sentence
3. Avoid personal information and common words. Avoid creating passwords from info that others might know or could easily find out, such as:
   • Your nickname or initials
   • The name of your child or pet
   • Important birthdays or years
   • The name of your street
   • Numbers from your address

Tips for protecting information on your personal computer (or other personal devices)

Remember to log off. Always properly log off and close your browser. This prevents others from viewing this information later.

Keep your computer healthy. Remember to check the websites of your operating system and web browser vendors for software "patches" and updates. This helps protect against software vulnerabilities.

Use anti-virus software. Viruses can enter your computer without your knowledge. Always use up-to-date anti-virus software that is capable of scanning files and email messages for viruses.

Use anti-malware software. Protect your computer against unwanted software being installed without your knowledge. Use up-to-date anti-malware to help protect against slow performance.

Use anti-spam software. Use up-to-date anti-spam software along with your anti-virus software. If you receive spam: don't try, don't buy and don't reply. Just delete it.

Use personal firewalls. A firewall creates a barrier between your computer and the rest of the Internet. It helps protect against malicious attacks and blocks certain types of data from entering your computer.

Turn on multi-factor authentication. Also known as 2-step verification, this additional measure of security will prevent misuse of your online accounts by individuals that may know or guess your username and password. Wherever possible, turn this feature on to secure your accounts and information.

Use a password manager. If you have trouble remembering multiple passwords, consider using a trusted password manager. Take some time to research the reviews and reputations of these services.

Wireless Access (WIFI)

If you are using a wireless network to access e-services or conducting any other online activity, ensure the network is secured. Using an unsecured network may put your online activities and data at risk of being accessed by unauthorized users.

It is recommended you use your own computer for sensitive activities. Public computers should not be trusted for anything but casual usage. Public computers may store personal information such as usernames and passwords or may become infected with malicious software.

Communicating with OPB

Your secure e-services account allows you to view your pension information and perform certain types of transactions (e.g., update your contact information, spousal status and beneficiaries, and initiate your retirement). You can also provide signed forms and other documents using our secure Document Upload functionality.

Communication by mail or e-mail may not be secure and could be intercepted, altered or lost. If emailing sensitive personal information, protect the document with a password and phone us to provide the password.

Does OPB endorse third-party websites, products or services linked or referred to in OPB websites?

No. OPB cannot control the content of any third-party website linked to our websites. Therefore, OPB is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of any information provided on those sites. A link to a third-party website is not an endorsement or approval by OPB of the organization that operates the site or for the content of any third-party site or for any products or services offered by any third party.

For more information regarding our retention and contact information, please visit our Privacy Policy (PDF).