I found this article on ZDNet, I simply cannot believe what it is saying, about the removal of the need for the data owner’s consent before a third party can share the data owners private data with other organisations.
I really hope this is not true, can anyone shed any light on this government proposal?
According to the discussion paper its just public sector data which they go on to define as
"Public sector data is data held by the Australian government as it fulfils its various functions. Government agencies collect, hold and use
data on topics as diverse as weather patterns, who is coming and going from Australia, and administrative data about access to government services by both businesses and individuals.
Data means any facts, statistics, instructions, concepts, or other information in a form capable of being communicated, analysed or processed (whether by an individual or by other means including a computer, electronic and automated means). Data can exist at different levels of detail, including aggregated to the category or population or at the more detailed unit record."
I’m sure theres more to it but at this time of the morning I havent the capacity for reading all of it.
I think they smell an opportunity to excise themselves from law and get some income from its sale!
Or just to proceed with their Big Brother tactics.
Without reading…maybe it is for sharing across government departments for various functions…not sell external of government.
If this is the case, is it possibly to allow checking of information provided to one and another…or maybe if putting on my ideologist hat, rationalising the data sets held by government into one to be shared across all to reduce duplication and create efficiencies. I suspect it would be the first one to allow government to scrutinise what individuals are telling them and to catch out those doing the wrong thing.
At this rate the only people who can be unaccountable for everything they do will be the MPs!
We’re interested to hear thoughts from the Community on this issue.
Here’s a direct link to the Data Sharing and Release paper (PDF).
The paper seeks input on the following questions:
Do you think the distinction between data sharing and data release is clear? How could this distinction be clearer?
What are the challenges for open release of public sector data?
Do you think the Data Sharing and Release legislative framework will achieve more streamlined and safer data sharing?
What do you think about the name, Data Sharing and Release Act?
Do the purposes for sharing data meet your expectations? What about precluded purposes?
What are your expectations for commercial uses? Do we need to preclude a purpose, or do the Data Sharing Principles and existing legislative protections work?
Do you think the Data Sharing Principles acknowledge and treat risks appropriately? When could they fall short?
Is the Best Practice Guide to Applying Data Sharing Principles helpful? Are there areas where the guidance could be improved?
Do the safeguards address key privacy risks?
Are the core principles guiding the development of accreditation criteria comprehensive? How else could we improve and make them fit for the future?
Are there adequate transparency and accountability mechanisms built into the framework, including Data Sharing Agreements, public registers and National Data Commissioner review and reporting requirements?
Have we achieved the right balance between complaints, redress options and review rights?
Have we got our approach to enforcement and penalties right for when things go wrong?
Will it deter non-compliance while encouraging greater data sharing?What types of guidance and ongoing support from the National Data Commissioner will provide assurance and enable safe sharing of data?
Please post your thoughts here, plus you can also make a submission online.
