MR KIRK URGES SAFEGUARDS ON COMPUTER DATA

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 32971, 18 July 1972, Page 3

MR KIRK URGES SAFEGUARDS ON COMPUTER DATA

Neu: Zealand Association

PALMERSTON NORTH, July 17. A call for safeguards to protect the privacy of information in I computers was made by the Leader of the Opposition (Mr Kirk) in an address to the Rotary Club of Palmerston North todav.

“I believe that the control over the computers should be legislatively established by providing strong safeguards which come dow n on the side of the individual rather than on the side of power and bureaucracy,” said Mr I Kirk.

This must include considering putting control ;of the use of computer information under an authority independent of the Government and outside the State Services , Commission. Mr Kirk said that this I authority should not be the : people who worked the computer. Principles akin to those of the Ombudsman’s office should apply. The authority responsible /should be required to report ; publicly as the public’s deI fender on all issues raised, on the uses to which information is out, and on the necessity for much of it to be assembled. t “He should also have the , authority to recommend ' changes which increase the - safeguards for the rights ofj the individual and his priv- , acy.” Mr Kirk said. “It should always be remembered that knowledge is

power. The consolidation of detailed knowledge about /every aspect of an indi-; vidual’s life, which the comi puter creates, confers anj enormous potential power of! surveillance over and man-; ipulation of the life of thej individual.” Mr Kirk said he was not anti-computer: he was for ; progress. The computer as a servant i could do a great deal to imi prove the quality of daily' : life; it was also true that without adequate safeguards • it could be a tyrant. Improperly used, the computer could provide the Gov- , ernment with the means of • intimidation, retaliation or manipulation, and this : through the use of records the individual did not even know existed. I At present 12 computers; : were being used by the Gov- : ernment and, in all, New Zealand had 100 computers. “Thus there is an increas-i ■ ing computer capacity in the; ; hands of central government ■

and the danger of the interlinking of these computers is: ‘considerable. i “Already steps have been; I taken which, while not going The whole way, raise alarm-, I ing questions about the inItentions of the Government! and some bureaucrats,”, said Mr Kirk. Last week the chairman of the Cabinet Committee on State Services (Mr Thomson) had made a statement relat- ■ ing to the development ofi electronic data processing in relationship to the use of a 1 I computer in law enforce- ! .. ment. All information at present, . held on record would go into; ■ the system. It would include details . i about motor vehicles, registrations, ownership, traffic ■ offences, and, if the police were involved, not only coni'victions but charges and acquittals. Silence noted “Thus in one section in- ; formation derived by two ; separate Government departements will be pooled,” said' Mr Kirk. i “It is worth noting that ■ though the chairman of the, • Cabinet committee said there, would be no interfacing—- . which means the exchange of! !iinformation and interlinking’ : of computers with the private

sector —he was completely . silent about interfacing and the exchange of information within the public system. “It is my belief that step by step, notwithstanding. Government computers are : being moved towards a situation, in which an all-em-bracing multi-particular personal reference system will ( be evolved,” Mr Kirk said. 1 There was no statutory pro-j hibition to prevent its being | implemented. Mr Kirk gave an assurance, that the Labour Party, both in Government and Opposition, would do all it could to , ensure that no “such unique ! personal reference system is ; created, and legislatively to . establish appropriate protec- ; tive safeguards.” > Information was not stored . with bad intentions, said Mr . Kirk, but by error and misunderstanding it could have bad effects. It was indefensible that such a system should stand without proper ■ safeguards. > Mr Kirk suggested that in- • formation supplied should be ('depersonalised as far as possible. and that time limits t should be placed on storage. !,In this way, most information “would be time-expired, and -snot only could not be used Fibut would be removed from /the record permanently and /destroyed.