Wednesday 14th Jun 2000
Rodney Hide
Media Release -- Economy

ACT Finance spokesman Rodney Hide said today that the IRD must place an electronic footprint on taxpayers’ files to know who is accessing sensitive information and for what reason. “The case of former IRD worker Sopo Matagi pleading guilty to selling taxpayers’ phone numbers and addresses highlights the problem,” he said. “The IRD have no check on who accesses a taxpayers’ file. What is needed is an “electronic footprint” that records everytime a taxpayer file is accessed as all other sensitive databases have. This is what the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee Inquiry recommended but so far the IRD are only able to use the footprint on a few dozen of the two million taxpayers upon whom they maintain a file. It simply isn’t good enough,” he said. “The IRD should also let those taxpayers know who have had their privacy breached. As it stands no one knows if their personal information has been handed out and to whom,” said Rodney Hide. Sopo Matagi was today sentenced to nine months jail for fraud in the Auckland District Court. ENDS

For more information visit ACT online at http://www.act.org.nz or contact the ACT Parliamentary Office at act@parliament.govt.nz.

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