Liberal government's lack of oversight to blame for privacy breach

Government failed to act on Privacy Commissioner's advice

HALIFAX - Reports released today show the Liberal government poorly managed the FOI website, did not consider the risks to personal information and relied too heavily on private sector companies to protect Nova Scotians’ data.

“The Auditor General and Privacy Commissioner have clearly outlined that the FOIPOP privacy breach was entirely preventable and occurred as a result of the Liberal government’s lack of due diligence,” said Lisa Roberts, NDP spokesperson for Internal Services. “The Liberal government was advised to take action, they failed to do so, and people’s private information was put at risk as a result.”

Many of the issues identified by the Privacy Commissioner were flagged in a set of recommendations in June 2017. The Privacy Commissioner has also written a letter to the Premier and various cabinet ministers outlining the need to update laws and regulations around the protection of personal information.

“There have been many high profile data breaches in both the public and private sector over the past few years. The public now understands the need for increased oversight to keep their data save and protect their privacy,” said Roberts. “The Liberal government has been completely out of step with this growing awareness and the need to act decisively to protect people’s information.”

The Privacy Commissioner explicitly pointed out that the FOIPOP Act requires the government to ensure proper security measures are in place and that the government has failed to do so.

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