Each structure is grammatically correct and an example of the passive voice, but there is a difference between the two. The structure "was + past participle" is in the passive voice and describes something that was happening in the past. So there are usually other events and action that follow, because this is a "narrative" tense. In contrast, the structure "have + been + past participle" is in the present perfect tense, as well as being in the passive voice. The perfect ("retrospective" would be a better description) tense draws your attention to the consequences of a prior action, rather than just simply narrating the past action. Thus, the effect is that it feels more "immediate" than the "was + past participle" structure. Let me give another example, say, using "I was made" vs. "I have been made": - "I was made an officer of the army." (I felt so proud to serve my country, until they deployed us to the war, etc, etc, ...) - "I have been made an officer of the army." (Let's go party!)

Yes, both are fine and correct. ''I was given...'' needs the time this action happened. ''I have been given...'' refers to now. You have the information. The simple past ''was given'' doesn't indicate this at all.

Native speakers use both sentences....sometimes "was" seems a little more informal, but in everyday conversation native speakers will say was. :-)

Both forms are fine, and may be interchangeable, depending on the circumstances. Examples: 1) "I was given the information that it is supposed to storm this weekend / I have been the information that it is supposed to storm this weekend." 2) "I was given the information yesterday that it is supposed to storm this weekend / I HAD been given the information yesterday that it is supposed to storm this weekend." (notice the verb change when date information is provided)

I think "I have been given" is maybe the "present perfect" tense, or something similar. I'm a native speaker, so I don't know the names of the grammatical terms very well. (Check out http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/presentperfect.html ) As some others said, the meanings are effectively the same. So what's the difference??? I have been given === Any time between the past until now, someone gave me something I was given === In the past, someone gave me. "I have been given" emphasizes that you have it now. Whereas, "I was given" emphasizes that someone gave it to you in the past. Here are some examples which show a conversation. The questioner (B) could ask whatever they are most interested in knowing, so either of the below questions could be asked, regardless of what the verb tense was. Anyway, the below answers focus more on what was emphasized by the verb tense (have been given vs. was given), to maybe help you understand the difference in feeling of the verb tenses A: "I have been given some information about when the next exam will be" (I have the information now) B: "Oh! So you know when the exam is now? " A: "I was given some information about when the next exam will be" (Someone gave me the information) B: "Really? When did that happen? Who gave it to you?"