It was about a week after Statistics Canada had released its 2016 census language data that it became apparent something had gone badly wrong with the numbers from Quebec. The stakes were high, as census information is relied upon for countless academic studies and government policy decisions. The computer error should have been detected at the source. By Friday morning, staff had isolated the problem, narrowing it down to a processing error on 61,000 follow-up questionnaires. “The computer error should have been detected at the source,” he said, outlining how the automated processes are tested ahead of time to make sure they’re functioning as intended.

Source: National Post August 18, 2017 20:48 UTC