Bill-3: Amendments to B.C. FIPPA to remove more of citizen’s privacy

If you’re a citizen of British Columbia and concerned about the government’s handling of your personal information, you probably want to read Bill-3 (full text of the proposed amendments) which has already passed second reading in the BC provincial legislature. These are proposed amendments to the Freedom of Information and and Protection of Privacy Act.

What they want to do is remove accountability for which Ministry is responsible for the data, instead, they’re hoping to build a monster database, which they call Integrated Case Management (ICM), and allow effectively anyone in government to read your personal information. As an investigator for breaches in British Columbia, it’s probably a good time to remind you that most breaches are not from hackers on the outside, but inside employees abusing the access they have. This puts your personally identifiable information at an exponentially greater risk. In fact, there would be nothing stopping them from also sharing this data with “partner” organizations, which include private companies, and/or foreign governments.

This is the most important bill this year in British Columbia regarding your personal information, be sure to share your concerns with your MLA!

EDIT: It’s a done deal, as of October 25, 2011, this bill passed third reading. (watch the 3rd reading video, or read the transcript)